Fractured Love
by seasidehearts
Summary: I honestly loved the girl to death and wanted her to know the extent of what I meant when I said that. I wanted her to forget about Ryou. Most of all, I just wanted to do anything that would make her happy. AU Sokai, sequel to Shattered Dreams
1. Prologue

**After doing a lot of soul searching, I've finally decided to write a sequel to Shattered Dreams. I've figured for so long that I ended it with no loose ends and that there was really nothing to keep going on. After editing Shattered Dreams, I really thought about. There's so much more that could happen, so much that hasn't been said. Thinking about it for a few weeks, I finally went through with it today. I hope that this story will be as highly admired and loved as the original.**

**Oh just a warning this one is going to be a bit more blunt with the sex talk and is just a little more mature in general because they are going to be freshmen in college but it'll still be at a T rating…for now.**

**Shattered Dream's 3****rd**** birthday is next Saturday, August 25****th****, so remember to think of it XD.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts.**

FRACTURED LOVE: Prologue

Kairi's PoV

XoXo

It had been two years now since Ryou's death and everything had been okay except for the few occasional nightmares. Sora and I had had a few disagreements now and then, but that was to be expected. After growing up together, we were finally both heading into our freshmen year of college. Jumping at a sudden roar of thunder and hugging myself a little tighter, I sighed, "Time goes by too fast."

This year Selphie would be all alone in high school. Of course she had Tidus, Wakka, and various other friends but I still felt a sense of guilt knowing that Sora and I were leaving. We had always been really close; almost like sisters. Now that I lived in her house with her, sometimes I could have almost swore that we _were_. Then there were other times where I felt like I was being intrusive just by being there, so I would stay at Sora's house for the night. Thank God his mom was so accepting of me or else I would have felt extremely guilty all the time.

I have no idea how I ever got so lucky as to have Sora in my life. I guess all the horrible years of my life happened just so that it could balance out with how amazing he is. Of course he had his flaws, but who doesn't? We both still had that little issue of wanting to go too far and that was going to get increasingly harder in the coming year since we had decided we were going to get an apartment together. We were really both hoping that part time jobs and the stress of classes would wear us out, I suppose. All was said and done now, and we certainly weren't going to do anything to change that.

Collapsing backward onto the bare mattress, I whined, "Hurry up, Sora." I was waiting for him to return with food to fill our pathetic excuse for a refrigerator and the fast food that we would call our dinner.

We got a two bedroom apartment just to show that there were two bedrooms, though it was obvious that neither of us were going to sleep in the other room. It would serve a purpose if Selphie ever decided to stay a Saturday with us or maybe even Riku or Jake. First we'd have to scrounge up enough money for another full sized mattress to in there, plus a frame for it. There was enough money left from my parents for me to make it through college comfortably, but just barely, so Sora and I had to be careful with the amount of money we spent. His mom decided that she would waste money on new furniture and give her old things to us. We protested profusely but quickly lost. It was so embarrassing too; I felt like we were married and buying a house with the way people kept offering to help us out.

Hearing the front door creak open, I hear Sora call out in a sing-song voice, "I'm baack!" moving into the hallway to face him, he held up two brown bags and grinned through drenched bangs that hung in his face, "and brought food to clog our arteries."

Giggling, taking the bags from him and walking into the bedroom, I answered, "I don't care what it does. I'm so hungry I'd eat out of the trashcan."

"It's been sitting here waiting for you." Sora answered jokingly from the kitchen as he put the groceries away, eventually coming into the room and handing me my soda before plopping down next to me. "Kinda sad we have to eat where we sleep." He commented before shoving a few fries into his mouth.

I shrugged, replying, "It's better than the floor till we get all the furniture tomorrow."

"Guess so," He replied with a mouth full of food, both of us slipping into silence to eat.

Finishing off the hamburger, I collapsed backwards with a sigh, "_Ah._ Who knew grease could taste who good?"

"I did." He retorted with a smile as he looked down at me.

"I don't see how you can eat so much junk and still be in good shape once hockey season comes around." I sat up, poking against his shoulder as I spoke. He never admitted to it, but I knew he wanted professional hockey to be his career and studying all this computer stuff in college was just his fall back plan; either way, he'd have a high paying job.

"That's easy," He answered with a mischievous smirk on his face, leaning into me, "I get my workout from you."

And this is how it always started. He'd say something and I'd melt, I'd be completely his and we'd both get so wrapped up in each other that we couldn't even think. Breaking away gently and tugging my shirt down slightly, I commented, "You complain about eating on the bed but not having sex without sheets. Sorry to break it to you, Sora, but that's even more disgusting."

"We wouldn't have gotten _that_ far." He replied in a pout, one hand at my waist while the other was beside my head, his spiky hair still damp from the rain and sticking to his forehead worse than before.

Giving a soft smile, I answered, "Thanks to me pulling away."

Raising himself off of me and collapsing at my side, he stated, "At least one of us has self control."

"Only sometimes." I closed my eyes and let out a long breath of air. Turning over and holding out my hand with a smile, I asked, "Ready for one of the toughest years of our lives?"

Gripping my hand and grinning, he nodded, "Oh yeah."


	2. Honestly

**Phew, has this taken forever to write; chapter one is always the hardest to write. Besides my humongous writers block, I've had a lot to do lately. My sophomore year is so far going pretty good, like for instance today we had our first Sound Crew meeting for the play; I'm assistant crew head, woot. So once the play starts, be warned updates are going to be very slow. **

**I'll apologize in advance for the fact that hockey is mentioned so much in this chapter lol. I, as well as Sora and Jake, am obsessed with it. This chapter is really just a set-up for the real plot to begin so there's a lot of meaningless conversations. Of course, since Jake & Sora are in college for the hockey team and hope that will become their career one day it'll be mentioned a lot. I'm hoping that the focus on the sport in this chapter won't like throw off anyone's interest in this story lol.**

**Oh, random note. Jake is in my Civics class XD. I had homeroom with him in 8****th**** grade along with Amy & Amy asked to be added in the story so I had to add to throw in someone else. I kinda laughed a little to myself cuz I haven't seen Jake in a year and just when I start writing this story again he's in my class again. **

**Disclaimer: My therapist says I own Kingdom Hearts (secretly). & I also don't own Honestly by Cartel (yes, I'm continuing to name chapters after songs that relate to them.) & I don't own Crank That Soulja Boy by Soulja boy, which one lyric shows up later.**

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter One

Honestly

_Please don't mind what I'm trying to say_

'_Cuz I, I'm being honest_

_When I tell you that you,_

_You're part of the reason I'm so set on_

_The rest of my life being a part of you_

**XXX**

Hearing an impatient knock on the front door, I sat up drowsily and let the covers slide off. Not bothering to fix my bed-hair or change out of my pajama pants and baggy t-shirt, I stumbled towards the door. Opening it, I was almost thrown backwards by the force of Selphie almost tackling me to the ground in a fierce hug, she exclaiming, "Kairi!"

Past Selphie's hair, I could see her mom, Sora's mom, Jake, and Tidus; all giving an awkward smiles and waves. I gave an awkward smile of my own in return, answering as I detached myself from the younger girl, "Hi, Selphie."

Noticing my attire and gravity defying hair, she commented with a disapproving look, "You look like you just woke up."

"That's because I did." I replied as I let everyone in, closing the door behind them and stating, "Speaking of which, I've yet to wake Sora up. Be right back," I escaped back into the bedroom. Shoving against his shoulder, I stated, "Sora, wake up. Everyone's here."

Groaning and pulling the comforter over his face, he replied, "Tell them to come back later."

Laughing and grabbing clothes to change into, I commented, "You do have to remember that they all voluntarily offered to lug all of our furniture in here. We don't want to scare them off, do we?"

"Meh," He answered from underneath the covers.

Slipping off my pajama pants and putting on my shorts as quietly as I could, I stated as I fixed the button, "You do realize that in the past two minutes under there, you just missed me undressing."

The covers thrown off his face but still lingering around his neck, he questioned, "What?"

Tugging on the bottom of my shorts, I answered, "See?"

Sitting up, he commented with a sly smirk, "You haven't changed your shirt yet, though."

Patting his head as I walked by, I paused once I reached the door to turn back and say, "Nice try. Now get ready; everyone's waiting on you."

"Okay, okay." He yawned as he stood up, clad only in black boxers.

"Good boy." I stated with a giggle, shutting the door and heading off to the bathroom to change my shirt. Fixing my hair and doing every other daily ritual, I walked out into the living room to see that Sora had already joined our group of visitors; now fully dressed in a band t-shirt and jeans.

Making my way to the group, I gave a smile as I stated, "Time to lug furniture."

"Loads of fun." Jake commented sarcastically as he started walking towards the door.

"Why do you think we're making _you_ do it?" Sora asked with a laugh, slipping past the cluster of people and rushing down the stairs to the parking lot.

"Notice how he runs away before you can reply." I stated in a giggle, turning back to flash my 'family' a grin.

"He's always done that," His mom admitted in a laugh as we walked down the last few steps. It wasn't hard to find the moving truck, it being the largest thing in the whole parking lot.

Looking at it and scratching the back of my head I commented, "Wow. It didn't seem like we'd need that much stuff…Or even _had_ that much stuff."

"What can I say, everything in my room held personal value." Sora reappeared from the side of a stranger's car.

"You didn't want to leave anything there for when you visit?" I questioned.

Blinking in thought, he quickly replied, "I did leave _most_ of the stuff. You can still tell it's my room; it's just not as over populated now." Walking past me, he whispered, "Now you're going to have Mom go into a fit about visiting every single weekend."

"Sorry," I whispered with an apologetic smile as he took a place next to me. Turning my head back to the others, I sighed, "I guess we should start now."

It did not take long for me to feel useless as Sora, Jake, and Tidus handled much of the heavy furniture while the two moms, Selphie, and I carried random small decorative objects and side tables. The boys finishing their labor and the girls their efforts to help, we began to search our almost bare cabinets for any sort of lunch. Managing to scavenge enough things for sandwiches, we all took a place in the newly decorated living room.

"It looks nice," I commented with a glance around the apartment, "now that it has stuff to take up the space." Sora nodded with a muffled noise, being in the process of trying to swallow food.

With a light giggle, Sora's mom replied, "Glad to be of service."

Letting a moment of slightly awkward silence pass by, Selphie whined, "I can't believe I'm hardly going to see you guys this year!"

"You'll see us, Selph," I gave a half-smile, not really knowing what to say because I was dreading it myself, "you always have Tidus to preoccupy you."

The brunette girl's face turned a darker shade of pink at the suggestive nature of my statement, "Y-yeah. But, still…"

"We would have flunked purposely to stay with you, Selphie, but they wouldn't let us." Sora joked with a wide grin, tilting his head in his and Selphie's mothers' direction.

With the cock of an eyebrow, his mother replied, "You quickly would be wishing you werein a college hundreds of miles away if _that_ happened."

Laughing nervously as he walked into the kitchen to throw away his trash, he answered, "Right."

"I would have killed you, too," Jake added as he eyed Sora, he walking back towards the couch, "I need you so we can restore this team's reputation."

"You make it sound like I'm the next Wayne Gretzky." Sora laughed as he took his seat beside me, adding with a look to Jake, "I'm not _that _good."

At this, Tidus spoke up, "I definitely can say that you _are_. Maybe not the next Gretzky, but still up there with the best."

Sora simply shrugged, "If you say so."

Giggling a bit, I questioned, "Out of everything in the world, the one thing in life you're self conscious about is _hockey_?"

"He's just being modest." Jake answered with a shake of his curly brunette hair.

"And trying not to show off in front of you." Selphie's mom added with an amused grin, Sora's own mother mirroring her. At this, he rolled his eyes and sunk backward into the couch.

With a small smile, I gave a nudge against him as a way to show an effort of comforting and changed the subject, "Oh, it's already two thirty. Didn't you say you were meeting someone at three?" My question was aimed towards Selphie's mom.

"Oh, you're right." Lifting herself up from the cough and giving a glance to Selphie and Tidus, she stated, "I guess we'd better be going."

Quickly jumping up, I gratefully said, "Thanks a lot for helping today." I finished as I nudged my foot against the back of Sora's leg.

"Oh!" Shooting upward, he gave a wide smile as he added, "Yeah, thanks."

After exclamations of "Sure!" and "No problem!", Sora's mom tousled his hair with a grin, "Hopefully we'll be seeing you soon."

"Don't worry, Mom. We'll be visiting often just to get real food." Sora joked, tilting his spiked head towards the kitchen as he spoke.

With a mock gasp, I questioned, "Are you insulting my cooking?"

Laughing and sticking his tongue out, he teased, "Maybe."

Rolling my eyes and giving him a slight shove, I answered to his mom, "Don't worry, we will."

"I'll kidnap you if you don't." Selphie guaranteed with a smirk and a wink.

"I don't doubt that." I answered before giving her a goodbye hug and turning back to everyone, except for Sora and Jake, "Thanks again for today. We'll visit next weekend to tell you how classes go and everything."

"Sounds Good." Selphie's mom answered as she herded her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend out the door, "See you then!"

Laughing at the bickering trio in front of her, Sora's mom laughed, "Bye," before closing the door behind her.

"Interesting." Jake commented once the footsteps of our visitors were no longer audible.

Laughing and scratching the back of his head, Sora replied, "I know, right? That's what happens when you try to cram a whole bunch of crazy people into a small place like this. And just think; we still have the campus tour to live through."

Sighing a bit, Jake replied sarcastically, "Ooh, fun."

Rolling my eyes at the boys' negativity, I walked over to them as I stated, "They aren't _too_ crazy. And it's just a tour; it's not like they're going to give us work or anything."

"I guess you're right." Sora shrugged while Jake still gave a grimace.

"It's still educational." He gave a faked shudder.

"You're so over dramatic, Jake." I again rolled my eyes but gave a light smile in amusement of his passionate hatred towards school.

"How do you think he gets the ref to call those penalties?" Sora inquired in a stage whisper with a snicker. Jake surprisingly did not seem to bothered in the smallest by his remark.

Walking back into the living room and retrieving his unfinished soda, he asked, "So what time does this thing start?"

"Any time; we can go down there whenever. It's not really a 'tour', it's just like our high school thing. They give you a map and you find all of your classes." I answered, leaning against Sora as I spoke.

"Let's just go now to get it over with." My boyfriend suggested, seemingly not phased by the fact that most of my weight was against him.

Finishing his soda and stuffing it into the trash bag on the kitchen floor, Jake answered, "Sounds like a plan to me."

"I'll drive," I quickly volunteered, lifting myself upright and off Sora's shoulder. I didn't really trust either of them driving to be honest. They were both speed demons and made every turn seem as if death was only seconds away, and I did not exactly feel up to that. Going into the kitchen to retrieve my purse and the car keys within, I asked Sora, "Which car has more gas?"

"Beats me," He shrugged from the other side of the kitchen counter, adding, "It's not too far to drive here from home so they both should be okay. That's assuming you had a full tank of gas we left, of course."

Giving a small pause and letting out a laugh, I stated as I returned to the other side, "Your car, then."

With a roll of his sapphire eyes, he replied, "Thanks, Kai."

Jingling my key ring as I turned around, I tilted my head with a wide grin and answered, "No problem."

Reaching out his arms and pulling me in for a kiss, Jake shoved past us and called loudly, "Hey! Leave the mushy stuff for after I'm gone." Removing each other from the other's grasp, both of us followed Jake outside with a small smile to ourselves.

Turning around to lock the door, I stated, "Amy must hate the fact that you don't like to show your affections in public."

Turning back around, I was faced with a tired glare, "Kairi."

"I was just _joking_, Jake. You need to stop taking things so seriously." I gave a light touch to his shoulder as I passed by.

Tagging along behind Sora, he merely answered, "Meh."

Making our way across the parking lot towards the car, I had to laugh for possibly the hundredth time as I glanced upon it. Turning around a giving a small shake of my head, I commented, "I still can't believe you got a Mustang, Sora."

"Hey, I like my car. Don't make fun of it," He patted the side of the car affectionately with a faked pout towards me.

"Yeah, it's awesome." Jake agreed with a raised eyebrow towards my amusement.

Again smiling at Sora's strange obsession towards the car, I replied, "I'm not making fun of it. It just seems too…conspicuous for your taste; especially the stripes." I ran a finger along the paint job. 

Shrugging and pulling the passenger door open, he answered, "It's just always been the car I wanted, so I got it." I entering the car last, Sora added before sticking out his tongue, "Besides, it's better than yours."

"Don't get me started." I threatened as I put the keys in the ignition; Sora's hands immediately at the radio. Leaving it at the most well known radio station in the city, he retreated his hand.

"YOU! Crank that soulja boy."

The lyric repeated many times, almost distracting me from focusing on the road, "What _is_ this?"

"Crap." Jake commented from the back seat.

"Yeah, not the best. I forgot my CDs though, so you're gonna have to live with it until the next song comes on." Sora replied, his sapphire orbs now covered by dark tinted sunglasses, leaning back in the seat.

Laughing from the glimpse I caught of him, I stated, "Sora, you have no idea how dorky you look right now."

"I would reply," He brought up the seat to continue talking, the sunglasses sliding slightly down his nose as he spoke, "but you're in control of the car and I'd rather not die."

Making a right turn, I retorted, "I'll keep that in mind."

Ignoring me, Sora exclaimed in a mocking voice after hearing a new song come on the radio, "Oh, this is my favorite!" He then proceeded to turn the volume up several notches. All singing along to the radio and continuing with many meaningless and random conversations during commercial breaks, it was not long before we had arrived on campus.

"Wow," Jake expressed with a low whistle as he stared upon the marble-like walls of the buildings.

Blinking a bit myself, I added, "It still seems as amazing as the first time seeing it."

"Psh, until we start lessons. Then it'll just get old." Sora commented, one side of his face pressed against the window as if he were using it as a pillow.

Pulling Sora's Mustang into a parking space, I answered sarcastically, "Well, thank you, Mr. Negativity. I feel much better about starting college now."

"You bet." He gave a grin to me, receiving a shake of my head in response before I shut the engine off and exited the car.

"Let's see the rink first," Jake suggested eagerly, his eyes lighting up, "considering before long we'll be having practice every day."

"Sounds good." Sora acknowledged with equal enthusiasm.

Both boys looking back at me with a pleading pout, I threw my hands up in defeat, sighing, "I pity the person that comes between you two and hockey."

Laughing and giving a grateful smile, Sora answered, "Thanks, Kai." Both of them rushing off, I felt it would be impossible to catch up with them. Even when I did and managed to grasp Sora's hand, I was tired out by the time we got there while the boys were both like brand new.

Entering the building and feeling a rush of cold air, I shivered and quickly wished I had brought a jacket. '_Weird how Sora hates the cold yet loves hockey_.' I mentally stated as we ventured through the stands; always standing close to Sora whenever they stopped so I could rob him of his body heat.

"Looks awesome," He commented with an absorbed stare towards the ice.

With the same glazed over expression, Jake added, "Yeah, I can't wait."

Snapping out of the daze and looking around at all of the seats, Sora stated positively, "Maybe we'll actually have somewhat of an audience this year."

"I'll be here," I promised, shivering again from the temperature and adding, "freezing to death or not."

Chuckling and wrapping his arms around me, he asked, "I guess that's a hint for 'Let's go to the rest of the school now'?"

Shaking my head, grateful for the extra warmth radiating off of him, I exclaimed, "No, no! It's fine; I'm just kinda cold. I didn't exactly plan to dress for winter."

"Well I don't want you to freeze to death, so," He removed one arm from me and lead me forward with the other, calling back to Jake, "Time to start the educational stuff." Groaning in reply, he followed us out of the building.

"Let's go over--" I was walking backwards and turned around at the right time to bump into some guy, "Sorry!" I quickly apologized, feeling my face flare up in embarrassment. Looking up, that feeling quickly evaporated as I recognized him, "Riku!"

"Hey," He laughed.

"Riku! We haven't seen you at _all_ since graduation! How's it going?" Sora quickly took a place at my side, almost managing to knock me over in the process.

The silver haired teen just shrugged, "Same as always; full time job added to classes to stay away from my parents as long as possible since I can't afford to live on my own yet." Quickly changing the subject to something more positive, he glanced between the three of us and questioned, "So you're going to school here?"

I nodded, explaining, "Sora and Jake got scholarships for hockey and the art program here's not bad, so…Here we are!"

"Plus the computer stuff." The spiky haired brunette added.

With a snort, Riku commented, "Computer stuff; what a major."

Shaking my head too, I answered, "He claims he wants to do something with computers as his job when it's completely obvious that he really wants to be a player in the NHL; especially when he can't remember the names of the classes he's taking." I jabbed my elbow lightly against his side as I spoke.

He merely sighed and crossed his arms, giving a, "Meh."

"I know _I'm_ here for hockey," Jake stated with a beam, glancing back to the building that contained the rink, "even if I just end up playing in the minors, I'll be happy."

Riku gave a smile, stating, "Glad to see none of you have changed much. I think you'll like it here, as long as you don't let all the stress of college life get to you." Taking a step back, he finished, "Well, I've gotta get to work, but it was nice to see all of you again. You've got my number if you want me."

"Yeah. Bye, Riku!" Sora called to the older teen's retreating figure.

"Bye!" Jake and I added in delayed reaction, Riku's hand raising up slightly to signify that he had heard us.

Turning to the largest and main building, I began walking towards it with an amused smirk, stating, "_Now_, we start the educational part." The two boys groaned as they dragged one behind me.


	3. High School Never Ends

**Phew. So I think considering how long this chapter is, I wrote it pretty fast. Key word **_**I**_** think, so that's not really saying much. I don't really have much to say this time. Oh, I got high speed internet finally, after years of dial up! & I was partners with Jake in civics and we pretty much failed at writing a poem for majority party. But we still got a 100 so it's all good.**

**Anyways,**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, "High School Never Ends" by Bowling for Soup for which this chapter is named after, or any other random things I may mention in this fanfic that are copyrighted.**

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Two

High School Never Ends

_And you still don't have the right look,  
And you don't have the right friends.  
Nothing changes but the faces, the names, and the trends;_  
_High school never ends._

XOXO

It was kind of pathetic, the way I was feeling at the moment; like a kindergartner being dropped off by their mom for the first day of school, out into the real world for the first time alone. Sora did have a class with me, but not today. He didn't even have to get up until twelve today. I, on the other hand, had a class at nine and had to suffer the anxiety of going to my first college class, alone. At least he managed to stay awake long enough to attempt to give me _some_ comforting; his words jumbled by his tiredness. It made me laugh and feel a little more optimistic.

Though the reminisce of this morning brought a smile, it could not warm me in this seemingly forbidding and frost-bitten hallway. Hugging myself in an attempt of self-comforting and warmth, I mentally assured myself, '_Almost there._'

"Kairi?" A gentle and quiet voice called out from behind me.

Turning around to face a smiling blonde, I exclaimed as I pulled her into a hug, "Naminè! Thank God, I was about to die from an anxiety attack from being alone."

Giving a light laugh, she answered, "I know what you mean. So, which class are you heading to?"

"Um, sketching and design. You?" I replied, shifting the weight of my tote bag on my shoulder.

Her face quickly lighting up, she exclaimed, "That's what I have, too!"

Giving a sigh of relief and beginning to walk forward again, I brushed a stray crimson hair out of my face and behind my ear as I stated, "Phew. That was one thing I was really worried about; not knowing anyone."

Nodding, Naminè added, "It is really awkward when you don't know anyone. Especially for me; it's not easy for me to meet new people."

"I'm alright, but I really prefer a sense of familiarity; especially on the first day." I turned back to give a grateful smile. The blonde nodded in understanding, not making a sound as we entered the room.

"Hey, Naminè!" Both of us turned our heads to see a brunette girl in the back of the room, waving eagerly with a broad smile upon her face.

"Oh!" Naminè made an exclamation of surprise, then dragged me towards the back of the room, "Hi, Olette. This is Kairi."

"Hey, nice to meet you! I've heard a lot about you from Roxas and Nam, here." I shook her hand as she spoke, her emerald eyes lighting up in excitement. She almost reminded me of an older and somewhat calmer Selphie.

Giving a glance back to Naminè, I gave an embarrassed smile, "I haven't really heard much about you, but yeah, nice to meet you too." Naminè and I taking our seats across from the brunette, Olette immediately began chatting animatedly.

"Isn't it so cool to be in college now? It's so like, _wow_, where have the years gone?" She practically bounced up and down as she spoke. Olette definitely contrasted the entire room with her bright orange outfit and her contagious smile. The rest of us were all strangely wearing dull colors such as blue, black, gray, and white and were all more nervous about surviving the first day rather than what had yet to come.

"It's definitely different." I replied with a nervous laugh, ignoring the few stares in our direction.

Nodding in an understanding, the brunette girl replied, "Yeah, change can be a little scary. But it also can be really exciting."

A hint of red grazing her cheeks, Naminè stated quietly, "That's true…My life was really different before I met Roxas."

"That's right!" Olette leaned over the table to give the blonde a slight hug, "Without Roxas, you wouldn't have been introduced to our little gang." Retreating back to her side of the table, she turned to me and began, "Speaking of, you should totally come and meet everyone tonight. Well, you already know us and Roxas, but I'm sure Pence and Hayner would love to meet you!"

"Sure, why not?" I gave a wide smile in response, before adding, "It'd be okay if I brought my boyfriend, Sora, right?"

"Of course!" Olette nodded, obviously eager about her new found college social life.

Chuckling, I joked, "I should probably get out now before hockey starts. Then I'll be confined to the arena almost every night."

"Sora plays hockey?" Naminè gave a look of surprise and I almost let out a laugh. True, she had not been around him much, but I found it simply amazing that some one could manage to _not _hear of his obsession.

Nodding with a light smile, I explained, "Yeah. He and his friend Jake are here on scholarships for hockey, actually."

"They must be really good." Olette acknowledged with interest.

"Neither will admit it, but yeah; they are." I commented as I tucked a strand of crimson hair behind my ear. Olette and Naminè both opened their mouths to continue the conversation but both of their jaws quickly clenched shut as the instructor entered the room. Taking an hour to explain campus as well as classroom expectations and the like, class dragged on for what felt like an eternity.

Walking out into the parking lot to our cars, Naminè asked, "Do you two want to go get lunch or something? There's nothing to do at our dorm, really."

"Not at _all_." Olette emphasized with a grimace.

Nodding eagerly as I felt my stomach gurgling, I answered, "Sure. I may be a few dollars short, so I may have to borrow some."

"That's fine." The brunette waved her hand dismissively.

"Let me call Sora first, just in case he might have a heart attack of me not being there before his first class." I joked as I dug through my purse for my cell phone. Really, I did not have the right to joke about it; I knew the way I missed and wanted him this morning was a little too over dramatic. '_He wouldn't feel like that, though_," I concluded, '_So it's alright to joke about it, I guess._'

Both of the girls laughing, they answered, "Okay." Dialing his number without even having to think about it, I held the phone up to my ear to hear the dial tone.

A tired voice answered, "Hey, class over?"

"Mhm," I answered cheerfully, then asked, "Guess who's in my class?"

Taking a moment to ponder, Sora guessed, "Uh, Riku?"

"Nope," I gave an amused giggle at his random guess, "Naminè!"

"Hi, Sora!" She chirped in the background.

"I'm going to lunch with her and her friend, Olette. Sorry if you wanted to see me or something before you left. I really appreciate you getting up for me this morning." I added quietly, feeling a blush and the fluttering butterflies of embarrassment rising in my stomach. To give myself comical relief, I added with a laugh, "Even though you were half asleep."

"You're welcome, then." He paused and I could just picture his goofy grin, "But, yeah. It's okay. I'll admit I kinda did wanna see you before I left, but I'll survive; I promise."

Biting my lip in guilt, I asked, "You sure?"

"Yes, Kai." He answered before giving a loud yawn.

"Okay," I answered, fidgeting with my foot before recalling our plans for later, "Oh! Naminè and Olette asked us to go and meet some of their friends later. Roxas will be there too." I added to make the plans seem more appeasing.

"Alright, I'm down." Sora answered with genuine interest.

"You're down?" I repeated in a laugh. Noticing the impatient stares and foot tapping of Olette and Naminè, I added, "I'd better go; I think they're getting tired of me talking. Besides, I don't want to make you late to your class."

He immediately retorted, "No, please do."

Rolling my eyes and giving a slight giggle, I answered, "_Bye_, Sora. Good luck with your class; I love you,"

"Love you too. See you later," _Click_.

Flipping my cell phone shut, I turned to the girls with an apologetic smile, "Sorry!"

Olette merely shook her head and laughed while Naminè answered, "It's okay."

"Shall we go, then?" I inquired with a wide grin.

"Sure," Olette chirped, pulling the car door open and unlocking the rest.

Though the time out with the girls was fun and somewhat of a missed luxury for me, I still missed Sora so much that it seemed unnatural. Lying on the couch back at the apartment, I gave a sigh. '_Maybe it was a bad idea moving in with him_.' I bit my lip in thought, '_I'm probably going to turn all clingy…But am I already clingy? It does seem like I've spent the majority, if not all of my time around Sora ever since Ryou…'_

I shuddered and clamped my eyes shut as I tried to shove away the memories and recent nightmares. Ryou was dead and couldn't hurt me anymore, but I was still so _afraid_. Sora made me feel safe and realistically was the only one that could really get my mind off of the subject once I had thought of it.

Curling up into a ball in attempt to warm myself and make the goosebumps on my arms and legs vanish, I quickly found the attempt to be futile as well as trying to watch TV. Merely staring at the flashing and blurred images upon the screen instead of comprehending the shapes and objects, I allowed my consciousness to slip away; the exact opposite of what I wanted.

Now I was no longer in my new living room, but instead in a familiar and nausea inducing bedroom. The room itself was not bad, it was actually very plain; white, bare walls, a dark blue comforter covering the bed and a wooden dresser off to the side. However the grip of fear upon me and the smell of overly strong cologne emanating from every inch of the room was overpowering me.

No sooner then I had turned around to ensue my plan of escape had he appeared in the doorway. My eyes passed over him, clenching shut after catching sight of the smirk upon his face. I then felt his body pressing against mine, tilting me backwards and onto the bed. '_Selphie. Sora. Riku. Jake. Tidus. Their parents._' I repeated in my head to answer the question of why I wasn't resisting as he began kissing me.

Roughly breaking away, he questioned in an angered tone, "Why aren't you kissing me back, Kairi?"

Fighting back the tears that threatened to choke me, I squeaked, "I'm sorry. I will." Feeling his weight began to shirt again, I clenched my eyes shut as I thought, '_I'm so sorry, Sora. I have to, to keep you and everyone else safe._' My lips tremble red in an effort not to cry out as I felt his breath on my face. Sharply running his lips against my own, I felt a lone tear escape as it slid down my cheek as I gave the least amount of a kiss as I could.

I felt my muscles tighten as one of his hands left my face and quickly felt it at my waist. The hand slipping past the brim of my jeans, I let out a loud gasp of "_NO!_"

"Kairi?" I looked into the quizzical expression of the boy I loved.

"Sora!" I wrapped my arms around his neck and pulled him down towards me, burying my face into his chest as I cried, "I-it was the d-dream again…"

Placing himself beside me on the couch, he collected me into his arms and whispered, "It's okay, Kairi. He's gone. He can't hurt you anymore."

Sniffling, I replied, "I know. But it's always so real…" Looking up into his warm and comforting sapphire eyes, I stated as the tears began to build up again, "I hate it, Sora."

"I know," He brushed the hair that hung in my face behind my ears before kissing my forehead and adding, "I would take it all away if I could."

"Thanks," I answered still in sniffles, nudging my head against his shoulder and adding, "I love you."

"I love you, too." He repeated before giving me a small peck on the lips, asking, "Anything I can do to make you feel better?"

Lifting myself out of his grasp and scooting back to the edge of the couch, I was amused as he gave a confused stare. Nodding, I gave my reply, "Let's try that again," I reached out and tugged the collar of his shirt, indicating for him to come to me.

Grinning, Sora gave a quiet chuckle and shake of his head as he leaned downwards. Giving a giggle myself, I fluttered my eyes shut as he inched towards me. His lips softly caressing my own, this time it took everything in me to not release a squeal of delight as the warmth flooded over me; I felt like I was literally melting.

Deciding to keep as much composure as I possibly could, I gently broke away and asked, "So, how was your first class?"

Blinking for a moment as if he were confused, He replied, "Oh. It was okay, I guess."

"Better or worse than you expected?" I further questioned.

Biting down on his lip and racking through his memory, Sora answered, "Better-ish. Why?" I shrugged in reply, causing him to retreat and sit up straight again. Crossing his arms and giving me an examining stare, he asked, "Trying to distract me, huh?"

Grinning, I admitted, "You caught me. But Naminè and Olette are gonna call soon and I don't wanna be totally out of it when I answer the phone…" I whined, adding a pout for effect.

Throwing his hands up in defeat, he answered, "That's okay, I _guess_." Taking a moment to pause and comprehend what I had just said, he then gave a sly smirk and inquired, "So I really have that effect on you?"

Sometimes I missed the shy, younger version of Sora.

Feeling a warmth begin to rise in my cheeks, I replied, "Yes? I evidently must have the same effect on you if you can actually understand my brainless muttering and giggle fits." I retorted in a poor attempt to switch the embarrassment to him.

Eyebrows raising, he merely replied, "Maybe."

"A lot of help you are." I stated, slumping backward and tilting my head back onto the arm rest.

"Can't you let Olette and Naminè hear you babble for just this once?" He gave a pleading tone.

Sitting up, I started, "I just--" before I was cut off by his lips. Raising my hands up and my eyes still open from the surprise, Sora grabbed both of my hands and pinned them at my sides. "You're too good at this." I stated in a whisper as I closed my eyes and gave in, returning the favor. His hands slipping away from my wrists, my arms shoot upward around his neck and pulled him closer. The then ran a hand through my hair as he ensued a trail of kisses down my neck; putting me into a giggle fit.

"I'm too ticklish!" I complained through my laughs, quickly regretting saying anything after I felt his lips leave my skin. Raising an eyebrow and his hands inching towards my waist, I quickly exclaimed in protest, "No!" Ignoring my request, he proceeded to tickle my sides while I attempted to bat away his hands in futile effort. Luckily, my ring tone began to blast out of my phone and saved me.

Sora realizing his grasp, I retrieved my phone and giggled into the speaker, "Ha-hello?"

"Um. Did I call at a bad time?" Naminè questioned, sounding a bit flustered.

"No, not at all." I replied seriously before letting out another laugh and adding, "Just ignore me."

Pausing, she trailed out, "Okay…Well we were thinking about meeting at that restaurant near the school at six. You know the one I'm talking about, right? I can't recall the name at the moment."

"I think so," I answered, tapping my fingers against the wall in thought, "I'll be able to find it easily if I don't, though?"

"Yeah. So you two are going?" She asked.

"Mhm," I nodded, giving a glance back to the brunette as I stated, "I'm sure Sora will appreciate the real food."

Giving a light laugh, Naminè replied, "Okay, that's good. So, see you there,"

Nodding again, I answered, "Definitely. Bye," I hung up my phone and turned back to Sora who was holding a curious expression.

"Real food?" He repeated in obvious interest.

"Yep. They wanna meet at that restaurant that's near the school. The one that's always known for having tons of students in it? Yeah, we're adding to the population today." I explained.

"Sounds great." He stated, looking as if he were in a daydream about the food.

Rolling my eyes and making my way back towards the couch, I commented, "If your stomach growled right now it would probably sound more like an airplane engine."

"Probably," He admitted in a grin. Gently grabbing my wrist and pulling me down onto him, he added huskily, "I'll take you instead of food, though." I'd never had direct eye contact with him while he held such a lust filled expression as he had at this moment; it was almost over powering.

"N-not tonight." I squeaked in embarrassment and turned my head away.

"I figured that," He answered in somewhat of a sigh and immediately made me feel a pang of guilt.

"Hey, you're already pushing your luck, mister. You should be grateful that I stay here in the first place." I joked, raising my hand and placing it against his cheek.

Reaching up and placing his own hand over mine, he answered, "I know, I know. I am pretty amazed Mom didn't really say anything or question it at all."

"We're both eighteen, so she couldn't have really done anything about it even if had something against it." I pointed out, loving the feeling of warmth radiating off from both his cheek and the hand that covered mine.

"That's true," Sora agreed, his eyes closed and his expression relaxed.

"It's a good thing we did this," I started, his eyes opening against in interest as I continued the rest of my confession, "My first class…Wow, this sounds stupid now. I just--I dunno. I missed you a lot even though it was only about two hours at most." I stopped, feeling my face begin to burn.

Coming to a loss for words, Sora grasped for a complete sentence, "Kairi, that's--wow." Slightly lifting me and pulling me into a hug, he continued, "You have no idea how that makes me feel. I really wonder sometimes how I manage to deserve you."

"I could ask the same thing." I answered, tilting my head back against his shoulder. Giving a sheepish smile, I added, "So, yeah. I'd probably would have ended up staying here a lot and paying separate rent for nothing it if it gone the other way."

Laughing, he answered, "Glad to know you enjoy my company _and_ income."

"Mhm." I closed my eyes and smiled before remembering the time Naminè had said earlier. Glancing to a clock, I exclaimed, "Oh! We need to start getting ready; they wanted to meet at six."

"Okay." Giving me an expectant stare, he questioned, "Aren't you gonna get up?"

"I don't want to." I admitted in a giggle.

Tightening his grip on me and standing up, he headed towards our room with me in his arms, "Fine."

Sora dropping me onto the bed and continuing to the bathroom, I whined, "Ow…That hurt."

"Oh well," He shrugged with a grin before closing the door. Continuing to taunt and tease each other as we got ready, we managed to waste enough time to be there exactly on time.

"Kairi!" Olette exclaimed, running up to me and enveloping me into a hug. Sora giving a raised eyebrow towards her obvious bubbly personality, I merely shrugged. Pointing a finger towards her friends, she pointed out, "This is Pence, and that's Hayner." Pence was what some people might call a little pudgy, but you could tell he was confident in his personality with his strangely spiked brunette hair and basketball jersey. Hayner on the other hand was tall, lean with slicked back dirty blonde hair and had an air of excitement around him.

"Hi," Pence gave a small wave.

Hayner's eyes lit up in interest of something before greeting, "Hey,"

"Kairi, but you probably already know that now." I gave grin to Olette who gave a sheepish smile in return.

"Sora," He added, slightly surprising me because I did not have to nudge him for once.

"You're the new guy on the hockey team people keep mentioning?" Hayner questioned with a tilt of his blonde head. Though Sora's oceanic eyes would always win me over, there was something about Hayner's warm brown eyes that also had a charm about them.

Scratching the back of his head, Sora stated, "Maybe. I don't really know why they would be talking about _me_."

Sighing and whirling around, I stated, "Sora, don't get me started."

Forming a grin, he finally admitted, "Okay, I guess I'm pretty good." Tilting his head, he turned his attention back to Hayner and questioned, "Why? Are you on the team?"

"Hayner? Nah, me and him are more of skateboarding people." Roxas appeared beside him, Naminè connected at his left hand looking somewhat distressed. I frowned at her expression, the rest of the conversation fading out. She didn't look horribly miserable, but it was enough to catch my attention. I was questioning whether it was her shyness, but that made no sense to me because she was with people that were all her close friends.

"Let's go, Kairi." I felt the warmth of Sora's hand on my shoulder.

"What?" I glanced to him and back to where I was staring only to find that the rest of our friends had already retreated into the restaurant. Feeling a blush begin to rise in my face, I stated, "Oops. Yeah, let's go."

Catching up to the others, I noticed Naminè seemed to be acting more naturally. '_She probably caught me watching her._' I stated mentally with a bit of my lip, '_At least se seems better now._' My thoughts were then interrupted by the waiter taking orders. Continuing along the rest of the table, he paused at Pence who sounded like he was ordering the whole menu.

The waiter leaving and looking exasperated, the whole table looked to Pence. Giving a grin, he questioned, "What?" We all burst into laughter, he joining us.

"Next time say you want two of everything, too," Hayner suggested as he poked his elbow into the brunette's side, "I can't wait to see his face _then_."

Shaking his head with a chuckle, Pence stated, "No thanks."

"Yeah. Let's please try not to harass the waiter, guys. We do still have three, almost four years left here." Olette pointed out with the crossing of her arms.

Rolling his eyes and putting his hands up in defeat, Hayner answered, "It was just an idea."

"You have to admit most of your '_ideas_' usually get put into action, eventually." Roxas pointed out from the opposite side of the table with a laugh.

Grinning and scratching the back of his head, he admitted, "Yeah," quickly turning back to Olette, he raised his hands and pressed, "but I _swear_ this won't be one of those."

Placing a hand against her forehead, she gave a sigh, "I hope so, for your sake."

Leaning Olette slightly closer to me, I whispered with a snicker, "So you have to act as their second mother?"

"Basically," Olette gave another sigh with an amused smile, both of us turning back to watch as Hayner and Roxas began arm wrestling out of boredom, she stating, "Gotta love 'em, though."

"Cheat!" Hayner exclaimed, almost looking as if he were pouting after losing to Roxas.

The other blonde boy shook his head, questioning, "What are you talking about? Is it even _possible_ to cheat in arm wrestling?"

"You can, and did." Hayner accused, crossing his arms.

"Food's coming." Pence pointed out, ending Hayner's bickering and commencing the food frenzy.

Everyone starting various conversations, I gave a look to my supposedly sad friend and said, "You seem quieter than usual, Naminè."

Her head snapping up in surprise of her name being called, she then gave a sheepish smile, apologizing, "Oh. Sorry."

"You're okay, right?" I tilted my head and gave a worried expression.

Giving a wider smile, she stated, "Of course. Why?"

"You just seemed a little down earlier." I answered, feeling my embarrassment beginning to rise yet again, "Just ignore me. I think too much."

"It's okay," She gave a light laugh, "Thanks for your concern."

Giving a small smile of my own back, I was dragged into the other conversation as Sora whirled around to ask, "Hey, Kai. Do you remember that time…" By the end of the night I felt like I knew everything about everyone from all of their stories. Sora even talked about his Dad a little, which was really different of him.

After giving our goodbyes to everyone, as he put the key in the ignition he stated, "We should do this again sometime."

I nodded, "Yeah." I definitely wanted to meet again, considering I was dazed out the first half of our outing. In fact, I was still trying to digest all of the information I had received in the last half after I changed into my pajamas before Sora practically pounced on me and made me lose my train of thought.

Despite the fact that I fell asleep happy and tired from the make-out session, my night still was filled with nightmares of Ryou.


	4. Inside of You

**Well, I had this typed already before my old computer randomly decided to reject my newly installed high-speed internet. We're still not sure why. But now I have a new windows vista by HP & it pretty much owns. I could have swore I put this chapter on my memory stick thing, but I guess not. Oh well. I just have to type it **_**again**_

**WARNING: This chapter has one of my attempts at writing something sexual with no experience. Be warned of either its fail, or its mentally scarring potential. **

**QUESTION: What do you think of Kairi's explanation of love? I'm curious to see if I was feeling the real thing or not…**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Kingdom Hearts nor the song "Inside of You" by Hoobastank for which this chapter is named. Nor do I own "When you're mad" by Ne-yo which lyrics are included later on in the chapter.**

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Three

Inside of You

_What do I have to do_

_To get inside of you, to get inside of you?_

_Cuz I love the way you move_

_When I'm inside of you, inside of you._

XOXO

Shifting my eyes and trying to regulate my breathing, I repeated the question in my head of, '_Why_?' My life was seemingly progressing towards getting better and yet the nightmares of Ryou were intensifying.; it made no sense to me.

Loosening my arms from around my knees, I adjusted my head to view Sora's sleeping form. Chocolate bangs almost completely obscuring the upper half of his face, I could still spot his long eyelashes through them. Watching his body rise and fall with each breath, I could have swore he was an angel. It was one of those moments where I really wanted to go off to find a camera but dreaded the thought of waking him up and ruining the moment.

Thinking about it, it was pretty amazing that Sora hadn't already woken up from my squirming and yelling I gave as I pulled out of my nightmare. '_He could probably sleep through anything_.' I commented and giggled to myself. Shaking my head, I retreated back under the covers and scooted closer to Sora.

"Can't sleep?" His voice nearly made me jump out of my skin, if possible.

I turned over with widened eyes, stating, "Faker." Arching his eyebrows, he gave no vocal reply and stared intently for my answer to his question. "No," I gave a tired sigh, running a hand through my crimson locks as I finished, "it keeps getting worse for some reason…But everything's better than it use to be, so why now?" I questioned, my tone frustrated.

"No clue," Sora sighed too; I felt the warmth of his breath against my forehead as he did. "I wish I knew." He added.

"It's like he has to make my life miserable even from beyond the grave." I whispered, suddenly gripped by fear. _Was_ that it? It was about the only thing that made the slightest bit of sense for the moment.

"Maybe it's just relapse, or whatever. You said yourself a few years ago that you try to shove the bad memories out of your head." The brunette propped his head in his hand, his elbow jabbing into the mattress as he did so.

I profusely shook my head, crimson strands whipping in and out of my view as I stated, "Not this. I could never…It's always in the back of my head, somewhere."

"Well, I guess it's not completely in the back of your head then, if you keep having these dreams." Sora raised his other hand to poke a finger against my forehead as he spoke.

Heaving another sigh, I replied, "I try as hard as I can, though."

Pulling me closer and giving an encouraging backrub, he stated, "Don't worry. There'll be so much work soon that you'll be dreaming about math equations and stuff."

Rolling my eyes and laughing, I stated, "Oh, that makes me feel _so_ much better. I can't wait." Truthfully, I'd take his exaggeration any day.

"I hope they lay off till after my birthday at least," He gave a wishful expression, quickly turning to me and adding, "not that I don't want your nightmares to stop as soon as possible."

Turning over onto my back, I answered jokingly, "Sure, I'll just suffer a few more days just so you can have less homework."

"I didn't mean it like that," Sora pouted, now leaning over me; his facial features shrouded by the darkness, only his bright blue eyes still visible.

How easily he misjudged my words. Locking my own sapphire orbs with his, I stated, "I _know._ Geez, you're getting as bad as Jake when it comes to sarcasm."

"Don't say _that_," He gave a frown, adding, "That makes me feel pathetic."

Laughing, I inquired, "Did you just call your friend pathetic?"

Nodding with a still present and over dramatized grimace, Sora stated, "When it comes to sarcasm, yeah."

Shrinking backwards, I commented, "You're mean."

His face automatically lowered to mine so that our noses touched, squinting his eyes and repeating, "Mean, huh?"

I nodded, trying to hide my grin as I answered, "Yes."

He tilted his head and I closed my eyes in reflex, expecting a kiss. Upon hearing the squeak of the mattress and feeling his weight shift more to my legs, I opened my eyes to see his grinning face state, "Now _that's _mean."

Gaping and lifting my upper body slightly, I answered, "I'd slap you if I wasn't so tired." I finished with a laugh, eyelids finally beginning to feel heavy while the rest of my body was fully awake due to the fact that Sora was technically straddling me.

Chuckling at this, he gave me a look of confusion before glancing down and muttering, "Oh." Lifting himself up and moving back to his original spot to avoid any more pressure causing situations, he began, "So, anyway…I think we should try to go back to sleep before we end up staying up all night."

"Okay…" I answered quietly, turning over to see Sora had his back to me. Taken back by this, I gave a slight frown before deciding to snuggle up against him any way.

His muscles first tensing up from my touch, he then turned over and collected me into his arms with a small smile, "Love you," He spoke barely above a whisper.

He must have realized his actions were worrying me. I repeated into his chest, "Love you, too." but I still bit my lip in thought. '_Is he mad because I'm still so resistant? Or mad at himself for thinking about it when he knows my nightmares are getting worse_?' I came up with many explanations, but quickly felt a pang of disappointment once I realized he would probably not tell me.

I lied awake in thought for at least another hour, Sora already snoring peacefully before I managed to succumb to my own slumber.

Waking up the next morning to the sound of someone shuffling through the kitchen and noting Sora was already up, I trudged into the kitchen and asked drowsily, "What are you doing?"

Jumping at the sound of my voice, he turned his head and gave a sheepish smile, "Sorry. And I was trying not to wake you up, too. Guess I failed."

"It's okay." I yawned before adding, "But you still haven't answered my question."

Retreating his hand out of the cabinet, he asked with a wide grin, "Is there _anything_ that's close to being called breakfast to eat?"

It was true there was not much to eat, but by his smile I could tell it was more of the case, '_Please make food for me, Kairi, because I am inept at cooking.'_

Shooing him away with a wave of my hand, I pulled out the bread and stated, "I'll make toast."

"Thanks," He answered, retreating into the bedroom as he added, "I'll call Mom and tell her we'll leave after we eat breakfast and stuff."

"Call Selphie while you're at it," I called out loudly as I pushed down the slide on the front of the toaster. Turning to the refrigerator and pulling out butter, I commented, "She's probably dying to see us."

"Done!" He replied loudly.

I listened to Sora's half of the conversation with his mom in amusement as I waited for the '_Pop_!' of the toaster. Finally hearing it, I pulled open the silverware drawer that instead held plastic to grab a knife and smother the pieces of toast in butter.

"Selphie, you know it's not natural to be hyper this early in the morning." Sora reappeared, making a spinning motion with his finger next to his head. Dropping the phone into my hands, he stated, "Here."

"Hello?" I called into the phone, watching the brunette grab a piece of toast and devour it as he walked out of the kitchen.

"He's so rude," Selphie huffed into her speaker.

Giving a small smile to where his feet now hung off the arm of the couch, I answered, "Only to you. You're only making it more amusing for him when you get mad."

"Remind him that he's not my older brother." She stated sourly before returning to her usual, cheerful mood, "So when are you guys getting here?"

Taking a bite out of the remaining piece of toast and swallowing, I answered, "After breakfast, shower, getting dressed; you know the routine."

"Shower?" The younger girl repeated suggestively.

Feeling my face growing crimson, I corrected and emphasized on the plural, "Shower_s_."

Bursting into a fit of laughter, Selphie stated, "Oh, you know I'm just kidding."

"I know," I sighed, holding back a fit of giggles after catching Sora's curious face and adding, "but _you _should know that I can't control my reactions." Catching sight of the clock, I quickly stated, "Well, Selphie, I'd better go if we want to get there anytime soon."

"Okay!" She replied in a jubilant tone, finishing in a sing song voice, "Bye,"

Moving my finger over the end button and hanging up, Sora stated in a sly tone, "I like her suggestion."

Feeling my face begin to flare up again, I headed back in the kitchen to hang the phone up and inquired loudly, "How did you hear that all the way over there?"

"Shower_s_." Sora imitated my voice, perking his head up from above the back of the couch. Noting I gave no reply and continued to wander the kitchen, he tilted his head and questioned, "Are you gonna make any more food?"

"Save ours; stuff yourself at Selphie's." I replied as I shut off the kitchen lights and moved into the living room.

"Sounds good to me." He gave a broad grin, but it only lasted for a second. Sitting up more, he gave a slight frown and asked, "Hey, something wrong? You're kinda acting like you're nervous about something; you're doing the whole 'have to make everything perfect' thing."

"What?" I questioned with an arched brow.

Pointing a finger towards the kitchen, he explained, "When you're nervous you have to make like everything completely straight and perfect. Normally you would have just put the toaster back, but today you wound up the cord all neat and stuff before gently placing it on the shelf and nudging it back into the corner. See what I'm saying?"

"Oh," I let out, realizing that he was right. Biting my lip in thought, I trailed off, "I don't know what I'd be worried about, though…"

"I'm the one that should be worried." He laughed as he rose from the couch, continuing, "It's bad enough I haven't made physical contact with my Mom in a week. The fact that it's my birthday soon, too…I'm gonna get attacked."

I placed a hand on his shoulder, giving mock sympathy as I said, "Poor you." Remembering that I had yet to by Sora a present, I mentioned quietly, "Then I apologize in advance for needing to go shopping and stealing Selphie for a few hours. You could stay with Selphie's mom, but I think that would be more awkward."

"No!" He dragged out in a groan, giving a pout as he pleaded, "Can't you wait till a time when I'm in class and you're not, or something? Don't leave me all alone."

"It's just your mother, Sora." I rolled my eyes, pointing out, "You've only spent the past eighteen years of your life with her until now."

He still was not willing to comply. Sliding down into the couch, he admitted, "I know. It's just so…_awkward_ now, Kairi. You know she's gonna ask me tons of questions."

Realizing that I had not thought of that myself, I felt my cheeks begin to burn again. Waving my hands dismissively, I replied, "Just answer them truthfully; we don't have anything to hide." Giving a glance towards the clock, I began to walk towards the bathroom and announced, "Well, I'm going to take a shower so we can leave sooner, and get done shopping earlier." I added for Sora's benefit.

Perking up a bit, he raised his head to reply, "Okay."

Rushing through my shower and other daily things to please Selphie, Sora, as well as both of their parents, it did not take more than forty minutes for both Sora and me to finish and leave. The car ride only being twenty minutes did not leave much room to have a decent conversation with Sora before being bombarded by hugs after taking one step out of the car.

"Were you waiting outside all this time?" I inquired with an amused laugh.

Giving a shake of her head, Selphie answered, "Nah, just for the last ten minutes."

Whirling around and following Selphie and her mother into the house, I heard Sora's feet drag against the concrete as he traced our steps. Breathing in the air scented of Selphie's newest perfume, I held in a cough as I commented, "Nothing's changed. See, Selph? You were worrying for nothing."

"It's only been a week." She pouted in protest with a cross of her arms.

Rolling my eyes at her reaction, I remembered my lack of having a present for Sora, "Anyways, we need to go shopping before dinner and everything else starts."

"Yay!" Selphie exclaimed in joy for her favorite activity.

Giving a glare of suspicion, Sora questioned, "So you mean you didn't have plans to go already?"

Scratching the back of my head sheepishly, I laughed out, "Uh, not really."

Not saying another word, he gave a short growl before turning back to answer an inquiry of Selphie's mom. Giving a curious glance to the boy, Selphie asked, "What's wrong with him?"

Shaking my head with a sigh, I leaned over slightly to whisper into her ear, "It's nothing, really. Sora really doesn't want to spend a long time alone with his mom, for some reason.

"Ah," She accepted, dropping the subject.

I understood why Sora was dreading it, but it was so unlike him to loom over it for so long. Looking up to see him laughing as he talked to Selphie's mom, it seemed as if all was normal and eased my worry in the slightest.

Catching sight of my stare, he retreated back to Selphie and me; Selphie's mom moving into the kitchen. "Hey," He greeted with a small smile, his hands stuffed into the pockets of his dark blue hoodie.

Taking a step closer to him, I repeated, "Hey,"

"They're cooking all sorts of stuff tonight," Sora announced with a broad grin, adding, "it's gonna be good."

"You'll probably eat it all, too." Selphie joked, lightly elbowing the older brunette.

"Will not!" Sora retorted with a cross of his arms and a glare.

It had always been amusing to watch the two of them together; always treating each other as if they were siblings. They were always bickering over _something_.

"Hey!" I interjected with a frown, placing a hand on a shoulder of both of teens, "You two are suppose to be _enjoying _each other's company."

"You're right," Sora sighed as he tilted his head down, wrapping his arm around me and pulling me closer in apology; my hand slipping off Selphie's shoulder.

With a cross of her arms, Selphie added, "I _guess_." Pausing for a moment, she asked with a newly formed smirk, "So when are we going shopping, again?" There was an obvious amusement in her tone, making it clear that she was taunting Sora more than actually asking the question.

Watching his eyes narrow into a glare, I tilted my head against his shoulder and stated, "We just got here, Selphie. It can wait for a little while."

A flicker of surprise came upon her face before she pouted, "Fine."

It was then I had realized I'd broken the number one rule: never take your boyfriend's side over your best friend's.

'_But Sora's my best friend too, and always has been,_' I bit my lip in confusion, '_so how does that work?_' Glancing back to Selphie, she did not seem to be annoyed or hurt. Letting out a small breath of relief, I commented, '_That's good._'

"What?" Sora questioned, his hands still lingering loosely around my waist.

Worrying I spoke out loud on accident, I whirled around to face him and questioned back, "Huh?"

"I heard you sigh," He pointed out with a concerned stare before repeating his inquiry, "What for?"

"Oh," I gave an embarrassed chuckle before replying, "It was nothing. Random rambling in my head."

Curiosity lingering in his expression, he dropped the subject, "Okay…"

"Really, it's stupid." I gave a light laugh in attempt to ease his worries.

"I believe you; no need to defend yourself." He replied with a roll of his eyes, smirking as he caught my stare.

"I really _should_ slap you for the way you tease me." I stated, a wide grin overtaking my attempt at a mock glare.

"Aw, but…" At first giving a pout, he paused and sang with a grin, "_You're so damn sexy, when you're mad,_"

I automatically flushed, never hearing his singing voice without the radio or a CD blaring in the background. Not feeling confident to applaud his singing talents or make a flirty response, I nervously asked, "So, um. Where'd Selphie go?"

"Hm?" Sora stared blankly for a moment before comprehending my question, then craning his neck upward to reply, "I dunno."

Feeling a pang of guilt, I began forward while dragging the brunette behind me and stating, "We should find her."

"Yeah." I heard his voice agree from behind me.

Pausing before the staircase, I could hear incoherent chatter coming from upstairs. "Up there." I turned back to Sora in a whisper, tiling my head towards the staircase. He nodding in reply, we both snuck up the stairs with quiet steps; Selphie still blabbering on the phone and unaware of our presence. Peeking through the doorway and finding Selphie's back turned, Sora dashed into the room and grabbed the younger girl by her shoulders.

Letting out a large shriek, Selphie whirled around and slapped him. "Ow! _Hey_!" Sora exclaimed with a frown, rubbing his now burning cheek.

Eyes still slightly wide, Selphie retorted angrily, "You deserved it!" The blur of what I assumed to be Tidus' voice flooding out of the speaker, the girl huffed, "It's nothing; Sora just scared me to death." She gave him yet another glare.

"I'm _sorry_," He replied earnestly, only to receive the cold shoulder. Tracking back over to me, he again held a hand up to his face and whined, "I can't believe she actually slapped me."

"You scared her instead of just surprising her," I patted his should consolingly, adding, "Easy mistake."

"I'm not trying it again." Sora immediately answered, a grin coming upon his face as he concluded, "At least, not for a while."

Rolling my eyes, I retorted, "Well, there's payback for you taunting me earlier."

"Sorry, Kai; that's my own personal payback. You'll have to think of your own." Selphie stated; her cell phone now laying on her computer desk, next to the keyboard.

Placing my hands on my hips, I gave a sly smirk to Sora and warned, "It's gonna be good, so I'd be worried if I were you."

With an amused smirk, he turned away and began towards the stairs, "Oh, I'm sure."

"He's changed a lot." The younger girl acknowledged as we began after Sora.

Nodding, I replied quietly, "We all have; we're basically all grown up now." Pausing and reminiscing on the days before Sora had confessed his feelings, I added with a small smile, "It is kind of hard to believe how much things have changed in three years. I really wouldn't have imagined that Sora would be so self confident and outgoing in our first year of high school."

Reaching the living room where Sora stood waiting, Selphie shook her head and grinned, "Yep. He certainly came out of his shell."

"Huh?" He gave a confused stare to us both, only achieving in commencing a burst of giggle fits.

Explaining our talk of how things have changed in recent years, all three of us began to recollect all sorts of memories from childhood. While most were humorous and happy, we did hit a few that included either my parents, Sora's dad's death, or Ryou; a short silence filling the air before one of us would skip onto the next thing. Sora had never really talked about his dad's death, nor his dad since the tragedy had happened. I supposed I would ask one day, but I was more of waiting until Sora felt it right to say something.

We managed to waste hours away just like that before Selphie and I remembered the shopping that had to be done. Dropping off Sora at his mom's he warned, "I'll get my own payback for _this_. And be careful with my car."

Selphie did not understand his attachment to the machine, either.

"It's his secret lover." I joked with a laugh as we exited the car, adding, "I should make a millimeter scratch in a really hard to see place just to see if he notices."

Laughing but making no reply, Selphie followed me into the mall. A few more minutes of giving short and meaningless answers, the younger girl asked, "How do you really feel about Sora?"

"Why?" I gave a confused stare. Wasn't it obvious how I felt? The way he and I acted together in public was pretty much as straightforward as it was in private.

"Well," Selphie gave a sigh, wearing a frown as she continued, "I really like Tidus and all, but I think I like him more as a friend than anything else. So I was just wondering if hearing you say what you think about Sora might reassure me, or something like that."

Blinking a bit in surprise in the seriousness of her answer, I replied, "Oh. Well, um…" Taking a breath, closing my eyes and picturing Sora, I immediately smiled and began, "I know for sure I can't picture myself with anyone else, first off. Just thinking about him makes me smile and I feel this…warmth, I guess is the best way to describe it, in my the pit of my stomach. I think about him a lot, and when I'm not with him I kind of feel like a part of me is missing."

Pausing, I turned to Selphie with a sheepish smile, finishing, "I don't really know how to explain it, Selph. I just know I love him."

Exhaling deeply and beginning to walk again with a smile, Selphie commented, "Then I think I'm right."

Catching up with her, I answered in a low tone, "I'm sorry…"

She shook her head, a mostly cheerful visage as she answered, "It's okay; it's better that I know."

Surprised by her positivity on the subject, I blinked before simply replying, "Okay…"

"So what are you getting Sora, any way?" She briskly changed the subject.

Chewing my bottom lip in thought, I replied, "Um…I guess that CD he wanted and something hockey related. I'll think of something meaningful later." I gave a laugh as I finished, adding, "Besides, I have a few more days before his actual birthday."

Nodding, the brunette answered, "That's true."

Having been to this mall for practically my whole life, it didn't take long for me to find what I was looking for so we could leave. Driving home, I was still left with the question of else I could do for him. Naming a few ideas off to Selphie, she disapproved of them all. Upon arriving to the house, I still had no good ideas and exited the car with a sigh.

"Kairi!" I had no time to react before being pulled back against Sora; a plan finally popping into my head as he kissed my cheek and stated, "I missed you."

"Sorry," I apologized for what felt like the thousandth time for the sudden shopping trip.

Craning his neck over my shoulder to look into the car, he asked with a smirk, "So what'd you get me?"

"A CD and a hockey stick." I replied, turning my head to finish with a whisper, "Wait till we get home for another thing."

"What are you whispering?" Selphie squinted her emerald eyes at the two of us.

"Nothing, nosey." I gave a light smirk to the girl.

Giving a disbelieving look, she began heading towards Sora's old front door, "Right."

Sora and I following after her with our hands attached, he tugged my hand for me to turn around. He held an intrigued, though disbelieving, stare as he looked me up and down and questioned, "_Really_?"

"Most likely not to the extent that you're thinking," I answered, staring at the wall instead of his face, "but I guess a, um…sample?"

Chuckling at my sheepishness and wording he pulled me into another embrace and ordered, "Just don't feel like you have to do anything you don't want to, okay?"

Nodding against his shoulder, I replied, "Mhm. It's my suggestion, so I think I'll be fine."

Releasing his hold on me, he stated as he pulled me into the dining room, "Just saying."

With that promise, I felt really awkward when conversing with his mom at the table. Lucky, or not so lucky, for Sora, he had already been interrogated beforehand. Selphie quickly caught on to Sora's over joyous attitude; saying nothing but giving me a quick smirk which I returned with a blank stare. That girl missed absolutely nothing; if I filed my nails, she would notice. It was kind of strange, actually.

Managing to live through dinner and making it out the front door without embarrassing myself, I slipped into the passenger's seat with a loud sigh to Sora, "Ugh, that dinner about killed me. It was so awkward!"

"Now you know what I was dreading." He answered with a grin as he placed the key in the ignition.

Folding my hands into my lap, I yawned and inquired, "By the way, how was that?"

Making the turn out of the neighborhood and keeping his eyes on the road, he replied, "Oh. She didn't really ask anything."

"So you were worried for nothing." I giggled.

Turning to me for a second, he stated, "You know she was thinking about it, though."

"Sure, sure." I waved my hand dismissively, still laughing.

Reaching down to shift the gears, he joked, "I'm always right."

Rolling my eyes and turning to face the window, I decided to agree for his amusement, "Of course."

Joking around the rest of the way, it was not long before the apartment complex came into view and I remembered the awkward situation awaiting. It wasn't really the idea of it that was awkward, it was more of the fact that it was _planned;_ that I knew it was coming. Every other time it would happen spontaneously, so that one of us would have to come to our sense.

'_Now that I'm letting it go farther, will I be able to stop him if I feel like it's too far_?' I bit my lip, but quickly shook off that thought, '_No, he's not like Ryou. Sora will listen to me_.'

Opening the door and holding it open, Sora gave a bow as if I were entering some sort of palace. "Nice." I laughed as I passed him. A grin forming on his face from making me laugh, he pulled the door closed and moved closer to me.

Staring at each other with stupid smiles upon our faces for a moment, I parted my lips to speak only to have Sora cut me off with a kiss. My arms wrapped around his neck as one his pulled me closer to him, while the other hand ran through my hair. The passion and speed quickly intensifying, I soon found myself pressed against the wall. Sora began to stray away from my lips and down my neck; very much reminding me of two years ago in the gazebo.

'_Before Ryou ruined it._' My mind added negatively, almost ruining my mood before I felt Sora's lips at the neckline of my shirt. Lowering my head slightly, I sighed, "Mm…"

I simply ignored the fact that I would never be so blunt. Breaking away and looking up to give me a smirk, he relocated his hands at my sides and lifted me up slightly before pressing me against the wall again. My head now closer to his, he did not have to lean downward as much to reconnect our lips. His hands grazing over the bare skin just below my shorts was enough to drive me insane; also making me feel as if my running my fingers though his spiky hair was not nearly enough. Unlike several years ago in the gazebo, I this time _knowingly_ arched up to him; the immense pleasure quickly spreading through both of us, making it so that we had to break away and catch our breath.

"Why are we still out here?" Sora asked in a stifled laugh.

Wrapping my arms around his neck and legs around his waist, I whispered more suggestively than I had planned before begging to kiss him again, "You tell me." I did not realize until later that his inquiry was more of double checking to see if I was still within my comfort zone. If I wasn't, I surely didn't notice.

He stumbled into the room, my weight dragging him down as well as the process of me trying to remove his shirt. Lightly setting me at the edge of the bed with him lightly leaning on me, I began to feel awkward as he stripped me of my own shirt. I was about to state my discomfort with a blinking open of my eyes before I was tilted backward; the warmth of his hands over my stomach as well as his kiss making me forget my troubles. It was not long before my shorts and his jeans had been discarded, too.

'_We've gotten this far without me having issues, so why not just go for it_?' I concluded mentally as Sora's lips left mine and bean to wander down my neck again. "S-Sora?" It was hard to talk when I felt so intoxicated; my voice just got caught in my throat.

"Hm?" I had to smile, feeling his voice against my neck.

This was it. I was finally going to give in.

"I--"

_Knock, knock. _The rapping upon the door was quick and impatient.

Freezing in place, Sora let out a groan. I gave a light giggle, though I, myself, dreaded the unexpected visitor. Slowly lifting himself off of me, he retrieved his jeans and started to put them on, muttering, "This better be important."

Upon Sora leaving the room and hearing him fumble with the locks and open the door, I heard the gasp of, "Riku!"

Jumping off the bed, I quickly threw on my shorts and one of Sora's t-shirts on the floor before throwing open the bedroom door to find a badly bruised and somewhat bloody Riku being supported by Sora. "_What_ happened?" I squeaked, ignoring the rain drops that flew in through the open door. Strange how I didn't notice it was raining before.

"Pa-parents. I'll explain in the morning. I just really need sleep." Riku dragged his words out slowly, stumbling forward so that Sora and I had to catch him. Sighing, he added, "Sorry for the burden; this was just the best place I could think of."

"You're always welcome here." I reassured him as we helped him to the couch.

Giving a bit of a coughing fit at first, he replied with a grateful smile, "Thanks."

"And don't worry about burdening us or whatever. Stay as long as you want." Sora added to my statement with a nod.

Eyes already closed in exhaustion, Riku muttered, "Okay."

Watching him begin to drift to sleep, I nudged Sora's should and said quietly, "Goodnight, Riku."

Hearing no reply, we both trudged back into the bedroom; slowly closing the door behind us. Turning around and shaking my head, I muttered quietly, "Poor Riku…"

Scratching the back of his head, Sora replied, "Yeah, I know…"

Folding my arms and biting my lip as memories of my childhood began to play in my head, I whispered, "I certainly don't miss that."

Quickly collecting me into his arms and kissing my forehead, he stated, "C'mon; let's try and get some sleep."

Nodding and slipping out of his grasp, I answered, "That sounds good."

"Thanks for your _gift_, by the way." Sora winked at me as he unbuttoned his pants.

Rolling my eyes and giving an embarrassed laugh, I turned away to quickly exchange my shorts for pajama pants and collapsed onto the bed. He plopping down next to me and giving a goofy grin, I finally laughed and replied, "You're welcome."


	5. Over My Head

**Sorry this took so long. I'm trying to do something so I can't say much more.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts.**

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Four

Over My Head

_Everyone knows I'm in over my head, over my head;_

_With eight seconds left in overtime,_

_She's on your mind, she's on your mind._

XOXO

Riku gave us the summary of the fight with his parents over breakfast. In short, he had brought up the fact that he was glad that Ryou was gone and his parents were not exactly pleased by his statement. And so, Sora and I gained a new roommate. Though we were both eager and happy to help Riku out, it was a bit awkward no long having the apartment to ourselves. Even with Riku at work or out with Lenne we both felt the need to keep displays of affection at a low level due to the fact we never had an exact measurement of when he would return.

"We'll go out this weekend to get sometime to ourselves, okay?" Sora promised in a low tone, throwing his duffle bag of hockey equipment over his shoulder.

Giving a glance to the closed door of the bedroom in which Riku resided, I replied in a whisper, "As long as Riku doesn't trash the place or possibly scar us for life when we get back."

Snickering at my response, Sora shook his head with a grin, "He knows better."

Catching sight of the time on the microwave, he pulled me closer to kiss me gently, stating, "Well, I need to get going. I'd better see you in the stand." He added with a wave of his finger.

"I'll be the loudest one there." I answered with a broad grin before kissing him again and adding, "Good luck."

"Thanks," He brushed a hand affectionately against my cheek before heading off towards the door, finishing, "See ya."

I gave a wave which he returned before shutting the door behind him. Looking again to the clock, I sighed. Why did there have to be practice before the game? Now I was left here to wallow in my boredom for another two hours. Trudging over to the couch, I grabbed the remote off the coffee table and collapsed backwards. Turning the TV on and seeing it was on the news channel, I decided to keep it where it was at.

Stretching out my legs to make myself comfortable, I flinched unwillingly at the unexpected sound of Riku's voice, "Practice started?"

Recoiling my legs back towards me and changing into an upright position, I answered, "Yeah."

"Sorry; I didn't mean to make you move." Riku apologized in reply towards my actions.

"No, it's okay." I quickly answered, adding, "Sit down, if you want."

Giving a nod of his silver head, he took a seat and merely replied, "Thanks."

The newscaster's voice filled the temporary, awkward silence between us before Riku began another apology, "You know, I'm really sorry for just forcing myself on you two; I promise I'll be gone soon."

"You're not _forcing_ anyone, Riku." I corrected for what felt like the thousandth time, turning my head towards him to finish, "I know you would have tried to do something for me if you could have while I was in the same situation."

Closing his eyes and crossing his arms, he exhaled, "The house I lived in would have been twice as bad as your own."

A flash of his brother running through my mind, I gave a slight shudder and replied, "True. But if it wasn't, you would have; right?"

"Of course." His aquamarine eyes flashed open again, his stare diverting back to my eyes.

Shrugging my shoulders and looking back to the TV, I stated, "Then don't worry about troubling us. By the way, are you going to Sora's game?"

Biting his lip in thought for a moment, the silver haired boy answered, "I wasn't planning on it…but I don't really have anything else to do. Why not?"

"Cool. You can ride with me," I gave a small smile as I admitted, "I don't really like driving alone, any way."

Having an amused grin of his own, he answered, "Ah, I see." Watching TV and making random conversation, Riku and I wasted the remaining hour before being it being time to leave.

Entering the arena, I was surprised to see my whole 'family' standing near the entrance. Selphie, her mom, Sora's mom, Tidus, and Amy; besides Sora and Jake, who were in the locker room, everyone was there and accounted for.

"They'll both be so surprised to see all of you here!" I clapped my hands together in obvious excitement.

"Quite the fan club Sora has." I heard Olette's voice from behind me. Whirling around to face her, she waved, "Hi, Kairi!" Behind her was her entire gang, also.

Laughing, I replied, "Yeah. This is our family." I pointed to each person as I identified them, "This is Selphie; my best friend and practical sister, her mom, and Sora's mom. This is Sora's friend, Jake's, girlfriend. This is Tidus; he played goalie for Jake and Sora's old team, so he'll probably be here next year as well. Last but not least, this is Sora's best friend, Riku."

Exhaling and turning to my second group, I began again, "Most of you already know Naminè. This is her boyfriend, Roxas, and this is Hayner, Pence, and Olette." Shaking hands making conversation among each other, I commented to myself loudly, "Everyone's gonna hate us for taking up so much room."

Laughing at my statement, our group then proceeded to find seats in the arena; thankfully finding enough in one place to fit us all. They were actually good seats, too; a few aisles back from the glass, we had a perfect view of the ice. Watching the timer click down, I twiddled my thumbs together in nervousness; causing interest from Selphie.

Giving a raised eyebrow, she inquired, "You've been to plenty of Sora's games before. What are you so nervous for?"

"It's his first _big_ game, though; you know?" I replied, tucking a strand of crimson hair behind my ear before shoving my hands in my pockets to stop my fidgeting.

Laughing, Riku commented, "You're not even the one playing and you're nervous."

"I just want everything to go well for him." I sighed, feeling a blush beginning to rise in my cheeks from my friends' taunting. The two dropping the subject, it was not long before the audience was asked to rise for the star spangled banner followed by the start of the game.

Sora, being new to the team, was not on the starting line. Waiting for the next few minutes in anxiety and excitement, I felt giddy as I recognized the jersey with Sora's number; fourteen. "Look!" I jabbed my finger into Selphie and Riku's shoulders before thrusting my finger in the direction of the ice.

Giving a look to her side, Selphie stated with a giggle, "You're doing the same thing as his mom."

"I told you, I can't help it." I whined with a pout, sinking back into the uncomfortable chair.

Patting the top of my head, the brunette gave a smug grin and replied, "I know."

The period coming to a close with a tied score of zero to zero, Sora and Jake glanced around the arena frantically so that they would not be left behind by the rest of their team. "Sora, Jake!" I called out loudly, ignoring any glares of annoyance that might have been directed towards me. Both gave a surprised stare at our large group before giving timid waves and leaving the ice.

Laughing at the boys' delayed reactions, most of our group went off to find the concession stands. Slipping down into our row, Olette stated with wide emerald eyes, "They _are_ really good."

I nodded, adding, "Just _way_ too modest."

Shrugging, she answered, "That's a good thing, though; as long as they're not being too down on themselves."

"I guess that's true." I admitted with a few blinks of my sapphire eyes. Sora really was too good to be true; I never could quite figure out why I happened to be so lucky. I fought back my sheepish smile in a futile effort, amusing Olette.

"Aw, you two are so cute." She cooed, holding her hands together as she sighed, "I wish I was lucky enough to find a guy to have a relationship like yours."

"Thanks," I laughed sheepishly as crimson coloring filled my cheeks, turning away for a moment to regain my composure. Catching sight of Selphie, I took a glance between the two girls and changed the subject with the exclamation, "You two could be sisters!"

Analyzing each other closely, Olette was the first to admit, "Hmm. You're right!"

"Maybe." Selphie merely shrugged at the suggestion.

"Ahem." Riku cleared his voice to signify that he had returned.

Olette, whirling around, quickly exclaimed, "Oops! Sorry." She climbed back over the seats and returned to her seat between Naminè and Pence.

Riku munching on his food, I turned back to Selphie; who I found to be watching Tidus as he talked with Roxas and Hayner. "So, how is that situation?" I questioned quietly.

Not expecting to be caught staring, Selphie gave a jump before looking to me and sighing, "Oh. Yeah, I broke up with him. Thanks for being careful with your introductions; that could have been way awkward."

"No problem." I quickly answered, but questioned her saddened expression, "You're okay, right?"

Nodding, the younger girl explained, "I'm not really _sad_. Well, I mean, I am. But it's more of the fact that it's just so _different_ then what I'm use to."

"Hmm. I guess I understand what you mean." I replied truthfully, scratching the back of my head as I did so.

I hadn't gone through the normal dating situations. I had been betrothed to Ryou, or 'Riku' as I knew him then, for almost my entire life. I guess that could count as being in an abusive relationship that I couldn't get out of. Then, from my sophomore year on, I had Sora. Sora had been and remained to be my life-long best friend turned boyfriend and so we were certainly different from most couples. Not to mention that his mom basically treated me as her own child so we were allowed to do many things that wouldn't normally be tolerated by parents. For instance, sleeping in the same bed. Innocent as it may be, it instills suspicions into their minds.

We just seemed to be absolute soul mates and I certainly liked to believe that. But after seeing Selphie's relationship that had formed shortly after ours, crumble, I seriously questioned what made us so special. I didn't doubt Sora's feelings for me one bit; but were we seriously going to last _forever_? Even if we did wind up getting married, would _that_ last? There were so many possibilities and the thoughts made me woozy.

'_Try to survive college first, Kairi_.' I mentally reminded myself.

The next period of play whizzed by in the swirl of my thoughts; the opposing team meaning to score a point. Ten minutes left of the last period, Sora scored the oh so important goal to tie the game; our section emitting a loud scream of joy in response. We were all in high spirits as overtime began; but that quickly was torn apart.

The opposing team forfeiting their goalie for an extra player on offense, Sora quickly dashed for the empty net once after stealing the puck away. About to make his shot, he was slammed into by a defensemen of the other team; sending him flying down onto the ice. I automatically jumped up; sheer terror taking over my expression as he did not get up.

"_No_." The noise barely passed my lips; the referee then blowing his whistle and quickly skating over to where Sora lay unconscious. Catching sight of a stretcher being brought onto the ice, Sora's mom as well as myself were already out of our seats and rushing towards the locker room.

The home team now on a power play due to the penalty to the player that had checked Sora, the horn to signify that we had scored quickly blared out; going unnoticed by us as well as the fact that our entire group was now behind us.

Having to wait outside the locker room due to the fact that the game was over and the team had returned, it was an extremely long few minutes until Sora exited; half his equipment still on as he raised his hands up and confirmed, "I'm okay."

Allowing his mother the first hug, I then collapsed against him with a muffled mutter of his name, "Sora…" I felt a tear that I had been trying to hard to hold back soak into the fabric of his jersey.

Rubbing my back to comfort me, he gave a look to everyone else and joked, "C'mon, guys. I hit my head all the time; it's nothing to worry about."

Though I laughed along with everyone else, I quickly replied, "But you don't lay unconscious like that…"

"You know I've seen it happen to you more than once, Sora; but it's just as terrifying every time." I heard his mother confirm my statement.

He sighed, his head dropping as he apologized, "I know; I'm sorry. I need to learn to keep my head up. That is, after all, the most important rule." A moment of silence passing by, Sora shook me gently and stated, "Kairi, I need to go change so I can go home; okay?"

Sniffling a last time, I released my hold around him and replied quietly, "Okay."

"Sorry again, for worrying you." He kissed my forehead and locked his eyes with mine for a moment before turning to give a wave to everyone else, then retreating back into the locker room.

Not a moment later, Jake emerged from the double doors with a jubilant grin; everyone picking up on his mood instantaneously as if it were contagious. I gave a few smiles of amusement as he spoke; my real focus still upon the doors, watching every player leave as I awaited Sora's return.

Finally appearing again, I was quickly at his side to ask, "You're not planning on driving, are you?"

Parting his lips to reply, he froze and blinked a few times before stating slyly, "That depends on your reaction to my answer."

While Sora gave a slight laugh, I gave a serious reply, "Sora, you just had a _concussion_; that's a serious head injury. I really don't think it's safe."

Hands thrown up in defeat, the brunette sighed, "Okay, I won't drive. What do you suppose we do about my car?"

Tugging Riku out of the other conversation, I pointed a finger at him and stated, "I drove Riku here, so he could do it." 

"Do _what_, exactly?" Riku gave an oblivious stare between the two of us.

Pulling the keys from his pocket and holding them out, Sora scratched the back of his head as he asked, "Can you drive my car back to the apartment? Kairi won't let me do it myself." I elbowed him slightly for making me sound so controlling, causing him to emit, "Ow."

Laughing and twirling the key-ring around his finger, the older teen answered, "Sure."

Sora and Jake spent the last few minutes thanking everyone for coming before they started to depart in waves. Once in the solitude of my car, Sora's head hung low as he commented in a sigh, "What a first game, huh?"

"What are you talking about?" I gave a questioning stare to the boy after putting the car in reverse, stating, "Sora, you basically won it for your team; you scored the point that tied it up. It's not your fault that the guy on the other team used bad judgment and everyone knows that."

"I should have kept my head up, though." He replied bitterly. He hadn't even reached for the radio yet; that really threw me off guard.

"We all do things that we say we won't." I pointed out, offering a small smile to him as I braked for the red light.

"That's a good way of putting it, I guess." He gave a light grin; his pearly white teeth and sapphire eyes easily visible in the moonlight that leaked through the car door windows. Reaching out and touching the side of my face for a moment, he stated, "Thanks, Kai. It's not even that what you said was right; just talking with you makes me feel better."

"So you're saying I'm wrong?" I teased, giving a light giggle; the car slightly straying to the curb now that I was driving again before I quickly corrected the problem.

Shaking his head vigorously, he replied, "No, no. I mean, we could just talk about anything at all and I would just feel better."

Grinning from head to toe and my insides melting, I merely answered, "That's good to know."

Both of us pulled into the moment, the following silent was not awkward and the apartments appeared much sooner than either of us expected. Pulling into a parking space, I spotted Riku just closing the door as he exited Sora's car. He obviously saw us as well, lingering by the mustang as he waited for us to rejoin him.

Getting out and locking the doors, I rushed around the side of the car to link arms with Sora, stating, "Don't want to take any chances, do we?"

Not minding the extra attention, Sora kept his stare forward as he replied, "Uh, sure." Pausing, he finally confessed, "My head does hurt a little."

"Motrin and sleep for you." I sighed slightly; all of the side effects that could happen days after a concussion running through my head.

"You're not suppose to sleep after a concussion, though." Sora contradicted as we approached Riku.

"I just remembered that after I said it." I muttered sheepishly, a blush rising in my cheeks again.

"Good game, if no one's said it already." Riku stated with a wave.

Grinning, Sora answered, "Yeah; you're the first besides the couch."

"I told you that you did a good _job_. Doesn't that count for something?" I retorted with a pout, tugging on his arm to lead him up the stairs.

"I know," Sora replied tiredly, Riku's footsteps echoing as he made his way up the stairs as the brunette gave me a pondering look as he asked, "So since I hurt my head, does that mean you'll tend to my every need and want?"

Throwing the front door open and flipping on the light switch, I turned my head back to roll my eyes and state, "Only to a certain limit; and that's only if your head actually hurts." 

"Thanks," He replied with a kiss of my forehead. Not expecting that answer, I gave a focused stare to the boy as he released my hand, collapsing onto the couch as soon as he reached it.

Placing my purse on the kitchen counter, I gave a shrug to Riku's questioning stare. Both going into the living room, I quickly noticed that Sora's eyes were closed in a grimace. Riku taking a place on the opposite couch, I lifted the brunette's head gently to make a place for me to sit; causing him to sharply inhale in pain. Quickly taking my seat with his head against my leg, I apologized softly, "Sorry!"

He gave a weak smile as he responded, "It's okay."

"You really are hurting, aren't you?" I stroked his forehead and ran my fingers through his chocolate colored spikes as I spoke, adding with a light laugh, "Silly; you were joking around so much, you seemed absolutely fine."

"I hate worrying people." He stated, opening his blue eyes to glance and Riku and stare up at me as he added, "Like now."

"I can't speak for Riku, but you should know by now that I worry over everything." I scratched the back of my head sheepishly as I laughed.

Cracking a grin himself, Sora quickly replied, "Doesn't matter, though; I still hate knowing it's my fault."

Parting my lips to reply, I was interrupted by a knock on the door. I glanced to Riku with a pleading look, wanting him to answer the door since I was currently serving as Sora's pillow.

"I'll get it." He replied as he swiftly rose from the couch opposite of us, my eyes moving towards the door and watching it with curiosity.

The older teen unlocked the door and opened it to reveal Jake, who quickly rushed in. He had probably walked here, his face slightly sweaty and I doubted it was from the hockey game. Jake lived in the same apartment complex as us so it was not too much of a grueling task. He did, however, live on the opposite side.

"What bad luck," The boy announced as he walked into the living room, a slight grimace as he spoke, "I can't believe you can't play for the next two games."

Shutting his eyes, Sora groaned, "I forgot about _that_ part…"

"We'll probably fail horribly without you, but at least you're okay; right?" He took a seat on the floor to be at eye level with Sora, giving a grin as he added, "Besides I bet you're enjoying the special treatment."

Eyes still closed, Sora mumbled, "Even if I didn't have it, I probably wouldn't notice. I'm having the worst headache of my life."

"Sorry." Jake scratched his head sheepishly before placing his hands at his sides again and going into a rant, "That guy who checked you was really thinking about what he was doing. Even though you're new he could tell you had potential. Trying to throw our team off and it's only opening night…This year's definitely going to be different."

"That's for sure." Sora agreed, turning his head very slightly to reply with a smirk, "I guess I need to make best friends with all of the defensemen. Then I won't have to worry about anything."

I laughed at this, looking down at him to state, "In theory."

Blinking a bit, Sora suddenly came to a conclusion, "Actually, Jake, I'm not really going to get special treatment at all. I'm most likely still going to class and we have practice tomorrow."

"Don't go to class; you have a perfect excuse." The other brunette shrugged as if it were the easiest decision in the world. None of us had actually missed a class yet, so there was really no telling how much work would be missed.

"Eh…" Sora trailed off as he tapped his fingers together, eventually answering, "I probably shouldn't…Especially if the professor found out I went to practice and not his class. And Kai probably wouldn't be happy with me either." 

"Why not, Kai?" Jake asked in a mock pouting voice; my eyebrow raising from him using the nickname 'Kai'.

"He either goes to both or neither. If he doesn't feel good enough just to stare at a computer screen, how do you expect him to skate and do drills?" I questioned in a very serious tone, my eyes narrowed and my arms crossed as I spoke to the boy.

With a bit of a nervous laugh, Jake replied, "Yeah, I guess." Standing up again, he gave a glance to the boy propped against my leg, "I should probably get going. Hope you feel well enough that I'll see you at practice."

I gave Jake a mock glare while Sora laughed in reply, "I hope so, too. Bye."

"Adios," Jake gave a slight wave of his hand before making his way towards the exit.

Upon hearing the door close, Riku gave a look to me as he stated, "I think you scared him off."

"Oh well." I merely shrugged, leaning back into the couch to make myself more comfortable. Turning my head towards the silver haired boy, I stated, "You were pretty quiet the whole time. Tired?" I inquired with a concerned expression.

Shrugging and also sinking backwards as I did, he replied, "I guess."

"You can go to sleep; I'm alive still." Sora gave a grin to his older friend, adding, "and remember we still have classes tomorrow."

"I think you're okay to sleep now, too." I pointed out with a glance down to him, adding, "As long as you're not experiencing memory loss or anything."

"Yeah, I've been meaning to ask; where are we?" Sora gave a faked, or at least I hoped it was fake, confused glance around the room. Seeing my eyes narrow in annoyance, he quickly stated, "Just kidding."

Rising up from the couch he was seated on, Riku headed off towards the guest room with a statement of, "See you tomorrow." With that, the bedroom door was shut.

Gently lifting myself up, I was careful not to accidentally nudge Sora's head. Sitting up on the couch, he tenderly rubbed his head and muttered, "Ow…"

Grabbing his hand and helping him up, I suggested, "Let's just stay awake a little longer to see if any of the pain goes away. If we fall asleep then hopefully you'll fell better in the morning."

"Yeah, okay." He answered as we began to walk away. Keeping a light hold on his shoulder, I retreated my hand once he had reached the foot of the bed so that I could go dig through my dresser for pajama pants and a t-shirt.

Going into the bedroom and closing the door, I flipped on the light switch before exchanging my jeans and shirt for my sleepwear and exiting again. The room was dark and my eyes had not yet adjusted, causing me to stumble over many objects and to question Sora, "Where _are_ you?"

"Right here." I felt his hand grab my wrist and tug me in his direction.

Feeling the side of the bed against my legs, I stared blankly through the darkness as I asked, "You're sitting up, right? I don't want to crush your legs trying to get to my side."

"Yeah, I am." His voice answered, only a foot or so away. Sitting down and nudging myself towards my side, Sora's slightly visible grayish shadow invited, "Come here."

Looking up, I made a noise of confusion, "Hmm?"

"Lay down on me so we can talk and I don't have to turn my head to look at you." He explained his reasoning, his voice sounding a little more serious then it would normally be in this situation. I supposed it was because of his headache.

"Oh, I see." I commented in an amused tone as I began to tilt backwards. Lightly pressing my weight against him, I quickly glanced back so that I would not accidentally throw my head back and have it hit his. My path clear, I let my head sink down against the muscles of his chest and folded out my legs from underneath me. The full weight of me now against his body, he gave a quite noticeable shiver. I couldn't help but giggle as I asked him, "So you'll have no trouble staying awake, then?"

Placing his hands at my waist, he practically purred his reply into my ear, "I hope so."

His warmth quickly washing over me, I was already quite comfortable. "Good." I muttered as I closed my eyes and nudged my head against his chest.

"Hey! You can't go to sleep; that's not fair." I heard Sora whine; the air he exhaled blowing into my hair.

Fluttering my eyes open, I yawned before giving a devious smirk and stating, "I know a way of keeping each other awake." 

"And it is?" Sora questioned with a matching smirk, obviously intrigued.

"This," I tilted my head upward, kissing him passionately but lightly as to not put any pressure against his head. Once he attempted to return the kiss, I broke away with a grin.

Chuckling himself, he replied, "I get it…"

"Exactly." I turned my head back towards the door, staring at the pale moonlight that bounced off the white paint.

A few minutes later we were both asleep, despite our promises to stay awake. The next morning, Sora was in a much better mood. The headache was still there, he said, but nowhere near as bad as it had been the night before.

"Hopefully class won't make it worse," Sora groaned through a mouth full of cereal.

Carrying an white laundry basket that was overloaded with our clothes, I glanced to him as I passed, dropping the basket with a loud thud as I answered, "You know you'd regret not going once you laid eyes on the make up work. Besides, you said yourself last night that you needed to go. And don't forget what I said about practice." I continued to nag as I threw various clothing items into the washing machine. Making the correct button arrangements and pouring in detergent, I whirled around and returned to the kitchen.

With a sigh, the boy recited, "Both or neither; I know."

"Well, not necessarily. You could just go to class and not practice. I'd be fine with that." I joked, pulling out a chair to join him at the bar.

With a roll of his sapphire eyes, he scoffed, "Psh. Like I'd ever do _that_."

"Just kidding," I replied as I turned my chair around in a few circles, coming to a stop in front of Sora to add in a serious tone, "Don't over do it, okay?"

Slurping the milk left from his cereal and leaning over the counter to drop the bowl in the sink with a 'clang!', he looked up with a grin as he replied, "Sure, sure." Grinning back for a moment, I swiftly got up and maneuvered around the counter to rinse out his bowl and put it in the dish washer. "Oh. Sorry." He apologized sheepishly as he watched me.

"It's okay," I smiled as I looked up. Glancing sight of Riku's door, I frowned as I made my way back to the other side of the counter as I began, "Riku has really bad luck. I would hate to have early morning classes like he does."

"I'm sure we'll both have at least one within the next three years." Sora pointed out in a sigh as he slid out of his chair and onto the floor. Looking to the microwave for the time, he then gave a groan before turning back to me and scratching the back of his head, stating, "I guess it's about time for me to go."

Taking a step closer to him and wrapping my arms around his neck, I recited, "Selphie has a teacher workday today so I was thinking about going to see her for lunch. So if I go, I probably won't be here before you leave again for practice." Pulling him closer, I added, "So be careful…"

"I will," He promised as he place his hands at my sides, rocking me gently back and forth as he attempted to ease my worry, "The coach probably won't even let me do anything. Maybe I'll get to skate in circles if I'm lucky."

Giggling a bit from his response, I let my arms slide down a little as I looked up to him and said, "Okay, I guess I'll let you leave now."

Tilting his head down and stealing a quick kiss, he hastily removed one of his hands from my side to grab his textbook off the counter top, then walked away from me without a glance backward until he reached the door. Twisting the doorknob and pulling the door open, he gave a wave and a grin as he walked out the door, "See you later."

"Bye." I waved back, moving towards the door as he walked out to make sure the door shut all the way. Taking in the silence for a moment, I gave a shake of my head and decided to call Selphie before I let thoughts of Ryou take over again.

"Hey." Her voice interrupted the first ring. Selphie's cell phone was practically glued to her hand lately. If she wasn't talking on it, she was texting. That that I wasn't occasionally guilty of the same thing, it just seemed as if she over did it.

Adjusting my grip on the phone, I greeted back, "Hey. So, any particular time I should come over?"

"_Now_," She whined, giving me a mental image of her pouting as she complained farther, "I love not having school and all, but it gets so boring sitting at home all day. Well, maybe it'd be okay if I actually had a car to myself like you do."

"Don't forget I have a job and pay for it myself." I answered, fully knowing she expected to receive a car that her mom would pay for even though she knew that her mom didn't have that sort of money to waste.

Sighing into the speaker, Selphie replied, "I know, that's the only downfall."

"You're so lazy, Selph," I teased with a laugh before changing the subject back to my original question, "Okay, well I'm gonna start heading that way right now. Sound good to you?"

"Mhm! See you when you get here." Selphie chirped into the phone before hanging up without pause for my response.

With a grin, I shook my head and closed my cell phone, thinking how strange it was Selphie and I happened to be friends. It almost seemed like she would be the type of person I would hate and yet we were like sisters. Life had a tendency to be very strange like that. Opening the door to my car and falling into the driver's seat with a loud sigh, I concluded that that fact could be either very exciting or very frightening. Clicking on the radio, I turned the setting to the CD player so I could belt out the lyrics of my favorite songs instead of stressing myself with unnecessary thoughts.

Turning onto the street where Selphie lived, I tried my best to avoid glancing at my old house. My sapphire eyes eventually flickered to the window despite my effort and I couldn't believe what I saw. A young couple, probably only a few years older than Sora and me, playing with their toddler out on the front lawn. Quickly turning back and slowing for the approaching stop sign, I felt somewhat guilty and jealous at the same time. Guilty for the fact that they probably did not know the horrors that took place inside of that house and jealous of the fact that they got to live a perfectly normal and happy life inside of it.

Pulling into Selphie's driveway, I faked a smile as she rushed out of the front door. Getting out of my car and closing the door, I also managed to force a laugh, "Hi again."

She didn't notice.

She grinned and replied, "Hii. Come in," Selphie retreated back into her house with me trailing behind her. Turning around from closing the door, she gave me a smirk.

Squinting my eyes in confusion, I inquired, "What?"

"I've been meaning to ask; what did you and Sora do that night we had his birthday thing? You two were being so sketchy." Selphie commented in an innocent tone as if she were actually completely oblivious to the possibilities.

My mind flashed back to the night I would have given into Sora if Riku had not shown up; his body pressed so close to mine…

"Um…" I blushed and looked down at my feet to avoid the younger girls stare.

"You _didn't_!" Selphie exclaimed in a disbelieving laugh and gasp, grabbing onto the banister of the stairs as if she was about to fall over.

Turning a few shades of darker red, I corrected, "_No_!…But, uh…close, I guess you could say." I tugged on a strand of my hair to avoid looking her in the eyes while I admitted something so personal.

Laughing a bit again, the younger girl let out, "Wow, that's kinda awkward."

"You think it's awkward for you?" I retorted with a sheepish laugh at her.

"I just can't picture you doing anything. I mean, I've only known you for forever. I've seen you and Sora kiss, obviously, but it's still kinda weird for me to think about." Selphie explained, a finger placed against her lips in thought as she finished.

Finally looking up at her, I suggested, "Then don't think about my personal life?"

Rolling her emerald eyes, she replied as she walked into the living room, "I have now that you told me."

It would be pointless for me to argue that she forced me to answer. Keeping my mouth shut, I took a place next to her on the couch and prepared myself for her ranting.


	6. Mobile

**I'm sorry I always take so freaking long! But I really had writers block with this not to mention I was Crew Head of sound for Hell Week this time around. It's all worth it though because in this local competition we were nominated for best sound. Also my time has been wasted on something else that may produce more fan fictions in the future.**

**THE WORLD ENDS WITH YOU: Is the most amazing game ever. Possibly better than KH (but it's made by the same team, so it's okay). So go buy it; now. But remember, Neku is mine; not yours.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts, The World Ends With You for which I have just suggested that you all buy, and I do not own Zanisha who will make a guest appearance in this chapter XD. **

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Five

Mobile

_Everything's changing, _

_When I turn around;_

_All out of my control,_

_I'm a mobile._

I was so nervous for such a stupid reason. I had managed to get into another one of those problems that only I would have. Eating a big family dinner on Thanksgiving was so normal for most people, but not for me. My parents never left town on a holiday to see family; the didn't much leave at _all_. It seemed like they were much more interested in beating me rather than doing anything else.

I closed my eyes and shook the memories to the back of my mind. Even with Selphie and her mom, it would always be just us three. All of their relatives were scattered across the country and made it close to impossible to hold a get together for any holiday. Sora and his mom, however, had a large portion of their family only an hour or so away; thus, putting me in this situation. I guess it would be awkward for anyone to go with their boyfriend or girlfriend to meet their whole family over dinner but in my mind, that just made things twice as bad. There was no doubt that I was going to be following Sora around like a lost puppy.

The slam of a car door pulling me out of my inner ramblings, I noticed Sora's mom had gotten out of the car. Seeing that the coast was clear, Sora warned in a hushed tone, "By the way, just ignore anything that my cousins say. Every word that comes out of Axel's mouth is suggestive, Demyx is just…weird, and Zexion you probably won't have to worry about. He doesn't talk much. Just sayin'," Looking up and noticing his mom signaling him, he pulled open the car door and jumped out, turning around and holding out his hand for me.

Feeling the crisp fall air seeping into the car, I leaned over into the front seat to grab my jacket off of the vacant passenger side before retreating back and letting Sora help me out of the car. Looking up, I stared at the white house. It was similar to Sora's mom's house, but quite larger although it was nowhere close to a mansion. "Nice house," I commented as we strolled forward, his mother in the lead and both of my arms wrapped around one of Sora's. As soon as Sora's mom touched the doorbell, my anxiety level as well as heart rate spiked. The door quickly opening to reveal his grandparents, I quickly put on my best nervous smile.

Inviting us in and giving the rant of "We haven't seen you in so long!" to Sora and his mother, his grandparents turned their attention to me. "So this is the girl we've been hearing about for years, hmm?" The elderly woman gave Sora a smirk and a curious raise of her eyebrows.

Scratching the back of his head, Sora answered sheepishly, "Yeah."

Figuring it was my turn to talk, I released my arms from Sora's and extended a hand to them, stating, "Nice to meet you, I'm--"

"Kairi." His grandfather finished, giving a grin and an explanation in response to my somewhat surprised reaction, "We've been hearing your name ever since Sora was a little boy."

"Oh, really." I glanced to Sora to give him a playful smirk and found him to seem slightly flustered and blushing. '_Maybe this dinner isn't going to be as bad as I thought_.' I concluded with a still present smirk. After all, the first few minutes had already turned out to be interesting.

Catching on to her son's embarrassment, Sora's mom managed to lead her parents away and glanced back to suggest, "Why don't you introduce Kairi to your cousins?"

"Uh, right." Sora answered as he turned in the opposite direction; the look on his face clearly showing that he really meant to say, "_Why_?" Giving a pitiful look my way first, he gave a sigh and tugged on my hand, "C'mon…"

As he lead me to the other side of the house, I commented, "They can't be _that_ bad." It was kind of rare for Sora to dislike a person strongly, but I guessed it was because they were related and relatives never get along. At least that's how they make it look in the media.

"You'll see." He answered as we arrived into a living room type area. A rock music video was up at what seemed to be full volume with the back of a brunette's head partly visible above the back of the couch. On a separate couch on the right side of the room was a boy with silver hair that covered the left side of his face who seemed to be very absorbed in the book that he was reading.

'_Seems normal to me…_' I rolled my eyes at Sora's detestation towards his cousins.

"Hey, it's Sora and his hottie girlfriend!" A male voice called out, causing me to turn around and view a pair of bright emerald eyes and flame tinted hair asking, "Gotta name, hottie?" 

I could practically hear Sora's teeth grinding together. Giving an amused giggle, I answered, "Kairi." Sora shooting a look of disbelief at me, I threw up my hands and defended, "He would have heard someone say it eventually."

In a flash, Axel moved around to the other side of me and wrapped one of his arms around Sora's shoulder and pulled him closer, Sora giving a look of disgust and annoyance as his cousin retorted, "See? I'm not doing anything but being polite. Don't worry, sky; I won't hit on your girlfriend." The redhead returned his arm to his side, exiting the room but turning back to add, "Much."

"Shut up, Axel." Sora growled with what I thought sort of looked like a pout. Smiling to myself, I was distracted by the laugh of Sora's other cousin.

"He sure knows just how to tick you off." The boy had brown hair that was so light it was almost a dirty blonde in a sort of mullet cut with a pair of aquamarine eyes that seemed to highlight his features. Noting my curious gaze, he held out a hand and introduced, "Hiya, I'm Demyx. Kairi, right?"

"Right." I answered as I briefly shook his hand, my attention diverting back to Sora when he spoke.

Sighing, he answered to Demyx's statement, "Yeah, he always has; always will."

"Axel acts as if he's still in high school; he bothers everyone." The boy reading the book commented without taking his glance off the page.

Raising an eyebrow and turning to Sora, I asked in curiosity, "So Axel's our age?"

"Older, actually." He replied before rolling his eyes and adding, "He can be serious when he wants to, but he prefers being a show off."

"Are you sure about that?" The silver haired boy joined the conversation again, this time lowering the book away from his face.

"Do you always have to be such a _drag_, Zexion?" Demyx turned to the other boy, adding with a chuckle, "You should know it's a rare occasion for Axel to get a compliment." Giving somewhat of a nod, Zexion returned to his book and gave no reply.

'_Okay, maybe they are a bit strange_.' I commented to myself with a small smile, adding, _'But it's not really a bad thing_.' Turning to Sora, I could tell his nerves were still shot. Placing a hand on his shoulder in an attempt to make him feel more at ease, I made an excuse for us to leave the room, "So, who haven't I met yet?"

Receiving a raised eyebrow from Sora, I made several glances to the doorway. Looking at it for a moment, he mouthed, 'Oh!' before wrapping an arm around me and leading me out into the hallway, "Oops. C'mon, this way." Out of hearing distance of the other two teens, he let out a relieved sigh, "Thanks."

"No problem." I grinned before placing my hands on my hips and adding for amusement, "But I was being serious."

First giving a questioning stare, he gave another sigh as he realized what I meant and asked sourly, "Why are you so interested in meeting my relatives?" He let himself fall back against the wall as he spoke.

Stepping forward so that I was lightly pressed against him, I looked up and questioned back, "Why are you so dead set on me _not_ meeting them? I mean, it's obviously going to happen considering I'm here already."

Placing his hands at my sides and I placing my arms around his neck in return, he gave a pout and stated childishly, "I asked first."

Rolling my eyes and giving a smile, I admitted, "Because I find what they have to say about you amusing."

"Ah," He acknowledged, his hands returning to his sides as he slid out of my grasp and walked away. Stopping at the doorway and turning around to face my confused state, he questioned, "Didn't you say you wanted to meet everyone?"

Returning to his side and grasping one of his hands in mine, I confirmed, "I did; but tell me _who_ I'm meeting, first."

"The only two left are my aunts; Estella and Zanisha. Aunt Estella's kinda snobbish, to be honest. Aunt Zanisha is kinda…indescribable." He spoke in a low tone in case one of them happened to pop up while he was talking, adding slightly louder, "But I mean it in a good way."

"So who's mother to who?" I further questioned, glancing at all the photographs on the walls and desks as we absently mindedly walked through the hallway.

With a bit of a grin, he replied, "It's kind of obvious once you see them together, but Estella is Zexion's mom while Axel and Demyx belong to Zanisha."

"Do any of your cousins play hockey like you?" I inquired, millions of new questions that I had never even considered before were starting to float to the surface of my head. It was funny how I could manage to know so much about Sora and yet so little at the same time.

Raising an eyebrow, he let out a loud laugh and repeated in a disbelieving tone, "Axel, Demyx, and Zexion playing hockey? _Psh_. No way." Shaking his head again at my suggestion, he stated with a small and distant smile, "It was my Dad that got me into it; he would always take me to games when I was little. One day I just decided that I wanted to be exactly like those guys. I mean, what better job could there be then just playing a game and having fun, right? That's one reason I've been so dedicated to playing hockey over the years; it's sorta the only connection I feel like I have left to him. Every year I get older, I forget more about him…" Sora made a sharp inhalation and bit down on his lip in frustration.

My heart sunk inside my chest from the clear pain he was going through and I wrapped my arms around him, muttering, "I'm sorry…"

"It's fine," He patted my back lightly with his hand as a way of thanking me, slightly distancing himself from me to add, "But let's talk about this at home. I don't exactly feel like having to explain bloodshot eyes to everyone. Besides, I know I wouldn't hear the end of it from Axel." He added with an agitated roll of his eyes.

Letting out a giggle from his last statement, I released my arms from around him and answered, "Alright, sorry. Back on the topic of your aunts, neither of them are married?"

Pretending to pause and think about it, at least I hoped he was pretending, he gave a sheepish smile and answered, "Oh, yeah. I kinda forget about them since they never come to these sort of things; too busy with their businesses, apparently."

Giving a small nod of understanding, I replied, "Ah, I see."

"Dinner's ready!" Several voices all called at once from a room that was somewhat far off.

Walking towards the general direction of the voices, I joked, "Time to hear more embarrassing stories about you."

I had got no further than the exit out of the hallway before Sora locked his arms around me and protested, "Hey! I don't think so."

Laughing and attempting to pull his arms off of me, I whined with my best 'puppy-dog' expression, "Aw, c'mon! You might even find some things funny."

Sora shook his head and answered with a grimace, "With my family, I doubt that."

"But the word doubt means that there's a possibility, so I say let the girl have her fun." We both turned our heads to the staircase to see Axel at the foot of the stairs; his lips pointed upward into a smirk and his fingers were lightly tapping against the edge of the banister.

Grinning and tilting my head back against Sora's, I stated in a smug tone, "See? Your family agrees with me."

"What if I told you that Axel doesn't count as family?" Sora retorted, giving a light glare to his cousin.

"Ooh, _burn_." The older teen gave an expression of mock terror before returning to his smirk and walking past us, stating, "It's alright; I disowned you a while ago, too." Disappearing through the doorway for a second, he poked his head back out to add in a hushed tone, "By the way, you may want to stop holding your girlfriend hostage before one of the older people find you and misconstrue things. Bye, now!" Axel's head popped back out of view.

Floorboards squeaking under the pressure of approaching feet, Sora quickly withdrew his hands and threw them down at his sides. Sora's grandfather then emerged from the hallway that Axel had just retreated into, exclaiming, "Oh! There you are. This way," He went back into the hallway with Sora and I trailing along.

Looking up to see a table already full with people and noting that we were the last two there, I felt my cheeks begin to heat up. '_Ooh…This doesn't look suspicious at all…_' I commented negatively to myself as I found an empty chair and avoided looking around the table to see if I had received any stares.

"Dig in!" I heard Sora's grandfather exclaim from the other end of the table, looking up to see him pull out his chair from the table and sit down.

Looking down again to see what looked like an endless amount of food, I turned to Sora to give a nervous laugh and ask, "Any suggestions?"

With a tray of food already in his hands, Sora turned his head and gave a blank stare, "Wha? Oh. Yeah." Passing a few plates my way one at a time, he repeatedly stated, "This. And this too."

Soon looking down to a full plate, I commented with a nervous laugh, "Thanks, Sora. I think I got one of everything."

Putting down the next plate in line, the brunette smiled sheepishly and apologized, "Sorry. Don't feel like you have to eat everything; I know you're not much of a big eater."

"It's okay. I know if I don't get to it, you probably will." I shrugged, placing my fork into some sort of casserole. Placing the foreign food into my mouth and my taste buds finding it pleasing, I allowed myself to exclaim, "That's really good!" I found the same result to be true with most of the foods.

Sadly, I didn't hear any stories about Sora that were out of the ordinary; it was all just normal kid stuff. Although, his aunt Zanisha said he told her that he was going to marry me when he was little; causing whatever Sora was in the process of swallowing to get caught in his throat.

After Sora coughed a few times, Axel inquired, "Is that statement still going?" 

At this, his mom replied, "Stop teasing your cousin, Axel, and eat your pasta. Kay, thanks, bye."

Giving a roll of his emerald eyes, Axel placed a spoonful of food into his mouth and answered, "Fine…"

Now sitting in the backseat of Sora's mom's car with the sky darkened and the stars shining, I smiled in amusement over the day's events. Sora had quite the opposite mood of my own. His day was mostly frustrating so he now had his eyes shut with a slight frown on his face, leaning his head against mine in an effort to catch some peace and quiet on the way home. Glancing down to his hands and noting that his fists were slightly clenched, I uncurled one of them and slipped my fingers in between his.

He looking up and first giving me a curious glance, the boy gave a small smile after he realized what I was doing. I smiled back for a moment before leaning my head against his shoulder. We only briefly got the chance to cherish the silence before his mom asked me, "So, are you willing to go back for Christmas?" She joked.

Still, I took the answering seriously. "Of course!" I replied eagerly, lifting my head and adding, "I can't imagine being anywhere else."

"I can." Sora muttered in my ear, causing a small giggle to escape past my lips. Sitting up properly, Sora spoke to his mom, "We were planning on coming home for winter break, so that would work out. Hitching rides from you spares us gas money, any way." He added with a grin.

"In that case, you're walking everywhere except for to your grandparent's house."

"Aw, man." His expression turned into a pout before slumping backwards into the seat. Giving a side glance to me, he mumbled, "You have to admit it was worth a try."

"Since you turned eighteen it's not really your mom's obligation to make sure you have gas money anymore. It's never been mine, but you still manage to guilt me into making it seem like it is." I shook my head with a sigh and ran a hand through my hair.

Letting out a small laugh, Sora retorted, "Because I've never had to pay for anything of yours, either."

Raising an eyebrow and crossing my arms, I retaliated against his statement, "Yeah, you have. But you're forgetting the small fact that I always offer to pay you back and you never let me."

"I don't want you to."

"Then you can't complain about paying for stuff for me. The end, I win." I ordered and put a finger to his lips when he started to part them to talk.

Smiling, he let out a faked aggravated sigh, "_Fine_…"

With a relieved laugh, Sora's mom admitted, "For a minute I wasn't sure if you were actually arguing or joking."

"Us? Argue? Nah." Sora answered in a confidant laugh with a roll of his eyes. It was kind of a lie because we did fight on occasion, but it was never anything that wasn't fixed by saying "I'm sorry." Nor has it ever been anything that wasn't resolved within a few hours. Still, I guess that it was better for his mom to keep that good image of us.

Silence washing over us, Sora and I went back to using each other as pillows for the rest of the ride. I was left to listen to the radio on an extremely low level of volume and the hum of the car as I closed my eyes and tried to sleep somewhat. Opening my eyes after what I had thought had been a few minutes to recognize the city, I guessed that I had accomplished my goal of falling asleep. Shifting my head slightly so I could somewhat see Sora's face, his expression was blank and his breathing was quiet in my ear. I nudged against him gently until he lifted his head and muttered, "Hm?" He slowly blinked his eyes open and gave me a tired look.

"We're almost home." I answered quietly, smiling from the confused looks he gave as he glanced around the car.

Yawning and stretching out his arms, he slumped back into his seat; no longer leaning against me as he acknowledged, "Oh." Soon pulling into a parking spot in front of our apartment building, the car stopped and we undid our seatbelts. "Thanks, Mom." Sora waved as he exited the car with a jump.

Stepping out of the car and holding the door open, I echoed, "Yeah, thanks Mrs. Kimura."

"No problem. Just so you know, I'm holding you two on what you said about Christmas."

Leaning over my shoulder, Sora answered, "We'll be there; whether I like it or not. Kairi'll make sure of that."

Laughing, I began closing the door as I finished the conversation, "Bye."

Smiling too, she answered back, "Bye."

Shutting the door and watching her car leave, we then began up the stairs to our apartment. "You know, calling your mom Mrs. Kimura seems way too formal. But it just seems weird to think about calling her by her first name." I babbled as Sora attempted to find the door key on his key ring.

Putting the right one into the lock and twisting the doorknob, he replied, "You could call her mom too, but just warning you that may make her feel old."

With a giggle I rushed to the couch, plopping down onto it and exclaiming, "But that's awkward too! Although it's true; she kinda has been my mom over the years, even though I lived with Selphie."

Tossing his keys on the kitchen counter and taking his place next to me, he changed the subject, "So you wanted to know about my Dad, right?"

Giving a small frown at the sad tone in his voice, I replied, "I mean, I do. But only when you want to tell me, Sora."

Shrugging, he answered, "I already said I would and there's never really going to be a good time for it. So I might as well get it over with. It's not really suppose to be such a big secret, any way. I just never wanted to talk about it because I knew it'd be too much. I probably didn't wanna cry in front of you, actually." He gave a light laugh, locking his sapphire eyes with mine as he stated, "But I know you're not gonna judge me or anything, blah. I'm comfortable enough with you now that stuff like this shouldn't be a problem." Letting out a sigh, he began with a question, "Remember those few weeks where I hardly talked at all, even to you, right after my Dad died?"

"Well, yeah. But that's nor--"

"I wasn't quiet just because I was sad. I was _angry_ more than anything. My dad was shot when someone tried to rob him at gunpoint; some random guy that didn't even know him at all. He didn't believe dad when he tried to tell him that he didn't have anything. The one day that he actually forgot his wallet, this happens. But that doesn't really matter because who knows what would have happened if he even _did_ have it. Either way, the guy shot my Dad for absolutely nothing. Killed him in a desperate search only to get nothing."

"Then, after finally realizing my Dad hadn't been lying, he tried to make it seem like my Dad had committed _suicide_ so they wouldn't investigate his death. Thankfully the police working on the case knew what they were doing, realized what went on, and caught him. But I couldn't believe, and still can't, why anyone would take away someone's life just for something stupid like money. That along with I knew about your parents. You hadn't told me yourself yet, but I knew; I saw the bruises and cuts on you every day. I just really began to hate society and everyone in it Even if they hadn't done anything yet, they would; I thought. Maybe even me." He bit his lip before letting out a slow breath of air and relaxing his clenched fists.

He continued in a quiet tone, "It wasn't long before I felt better, though. You and Selphie proved my theory wrong every day. But my Dad's funeral was what really got me. After hearing so many people giving speeches and telling stories about all of the stuff he use to do made me remember him more clearly. It made me remember that he wouldn't want me to be like this. I still have some pretty cynical views on society after all these years, but I'm glad I opened back up. I can't imagine what it'd be like to live with all that anger bottled up in me constantly. Or what it'd be like now if I had managed to shove all of you away. I…probably wouldn't have lived this long, to be honest with you." Pausing, he gave a shake of his head before turning to me and apologizing, "I'm sorry, Kairi. I didn't mean to drop all this stuff on you."

Shaking my head vigorously in return, I replied softly, "I asked, remember? I think you needed to get it all out after all these years, anyway." Wrapping my fingers around his, I added, "I'm glad you opened up again, too."

Smiling and gripping my hand, he answered, "Thanks, Kairi." Giving a pause and narrowing his eyes in thought, he glanced around the apartment and asked, "Where's Riku at?"

"He told me he was going to Lynne's house. It was kinda early in the morning; I think you were asleep." I replied with a look towards Riku's bedroom.

Hearing the key turn in the door, we both looked towards the door to see Riku open the door. With a laugh, Sora stated, "Right on cue."

Raising an eyebrow and leaving his hand lingering on the doorknob, Riku questioned, "Am I interrupting something?"

Narrowing my eyes in assumption of what the older boy was thinking, I replied, "No, Sora was just wondering where you were."

"Ah, I see." He closed the door closed before walking towards the couch. Stopping at the back of it, he asked, "So are your cousins still as crazy as I remember?"

Slapping his hand against his forehead, Sora exclaimed, "Only ten thousand times worse! I forgot you knew about that."

Chuckling, the silver haired boy asked, "How could I forget?" Lifting his hand off the back of the couch and walking to his room, Riku gave a small wave and stated, "I'm going to sleep. Talk to you tomorrow."

Tilting my head, I asked curiously, "So how does Riku know your cousins?"

"They were at my house one time when he came over. Even as little kids they were as weird as they are now." He heaved another sigh.

I again rolled my eyes and stated, "They're not weird, they're just different."

With a bit of a laugh, Sora stated, "Different isn't always a good thing."

At this, I had no planned response. "Well, no…" I trailed off. Shaking my head, I let out, "Oh, whatever. I give up. I need to go to bed before I start babbling more." Giving a victorious grin, Sora's hand slipped out of mine for a moment as he jumped up only to hold it out again to help me up. Taking it, I murmured, "Thanks."

Once I had changed into my pajamas and slipped under the covers, Sora asked, "So you weren't kidding about going back to my Grandparents' for Christmas, right?"

"Of course not! Why would I?" I gave his shadowed figure a disbelieving stare.

"I know you wouldn't say anything if you thought it was going to hurt my mom's or my feelings. So I'm double checking. One hundred percent sure about going?" He questioned again.

"Yes, I am." I nodded into the pillow with a tired tone.

"Okay." He let out what sounded to be a sigh of relief. Turning over to face me, he yawned, "I'm so tired…"

With a giggle, I threw my pillow over his face and ordered playfully, "Then shut up and go to sleep."

Shoving my pillow back at me, Sora whined, "But I haven't gotten my goodnight kiss yet."

"Since when has that become a necessary part of your nightly routine?" I asked in an annoyed tone although I was grinning.

Pausing to think, he brunette answered, "Tonight."

Rolling my eyes with a laugh, I leaned over the boy and answered, "Fine." Leaning down and giving him a short kiss, I attempted to pull my head up only to feel Sora's hands pulling me back down again as he began kissing me. Returning the kiss for a few seconds, I broke away and whispered into his ear, "I was pretty sure you said goodnight kiss, not make-out session."

Grinning and kissing my cheek, he answered, "Yeah, but you know me."

Nodding, I replied, "Mhm…Now, I suggest you move your arm unless you really want me to crush it with all my body weight."

Retrieving his hands, Sora commented, "You don't weigh much at all, Kairi. It probably wouldn't do much to me, but it might have been uncomfortable for you."

Laying down and snuggling against him, I answered, "Either way, as long as I get my side of the bed, it doesn't matter."

"As long as I have you, it doesn't matter." He imitated my words.

My insides fluttering, I giggled, "Go to sleep…"


	7. Be Still

**SORRY SORRY SORRY!**

I don't even have a good excuse for taking this long. I have been traveling a lot but I've taken my notebook everywhere but I dunno writing had just taken the backseat for a little while. Well in these past few months not a lot has happened but I _**did**_** get my drivers license. So yay! I'm sorry this chapter is so short. And I'm sorry they sigh so much. I'll probably edit and re-write this one day anyway.**

**And Kurt…lol. I'm pretty sure you never read Shattered Dreams so you probably wouldn't be reading this anyway. But if you randomly find either: that line was just way too cute and I couldn't take it out when I re-wrote it. So, deal.**

**DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own Kingdom Hearts or Be Still by Kelly Clarkson. I don't own any trademarked things that I mention in this story.**

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Six

Be Still

_Slow, slow it down._

_Why do we run?_

_We're missing so much, babe._

_Just lay in my arms for a while._

_Be still…_

_We should have known._

_Foolish one with a smile, you don't have to be brave._

With the sound of the final buzzer, our group made its traditional trip towards the locker room. Sora already waiting outside, I was unexpectedly gathered into his arms and spun around with his exclamation of, "We did it!"

In a bout of giggles from the surprise, I exclaimed back, "You did!"

Though it wasn't anywhere near the playoffs, this game was still a real test of whether or not the team would be able to handle the rest of the season or they would stick to their less than average reputation. The team they had played against tonight had so far had a spotless record and was well known to be one of _the _best college teams. The final score being 4 to 2 showed that although our school had a bad history, we were going to change that this year; Sora and Jake being a huge contribution to that effort.

"Congrats!" "You did great, honey." "Good job, man!" Everyone smiled, hugged or high-fived the boy, despite the fact that he somewhat reeked after playing a large part of all of the periods.

Pausing, he whirled around to me and called, "Oh, Kairi! Some of the older guys were talking about throwing a party if we won."

With a grin, I questioned teasingly, "So you're asking me for permission?"

Laughing and shaking his head, he placed a hand on my shoulder as he answered, "No, I was asking if you'd go with me."

Mockingly tapping my finger against my lips in thought, I trailed off, "I suppose I _am_ your ride home…"

"Great. Be right back; gotta finish changing and stuff." He turned towards the locker room.

"But Sora," He turned around with a curious stare, causing me to grin as I finished, "You're taking a shower before we go anywhere." 

He actually blushed, covering it with a laugh as he started walking again, "Right."

Hearing a sigh from his mom, I turned back around for her to ask, "He's never going to change, is he?"

Giving a wider smile, I answered, "Nope." '_And I love him for that._'

"Hey, Kairi. I gotta go finish a few last minute things on a paper, but I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" Olette outstretched her arms for a hug and obliged.

She being followed by Pence, Hayner, Roxas, and Naminè, I waved to them all, "Bye, guys!"

"Bye!" "See ya!" They all called back before starting to make their way through the crowd.

"I should probably return Selphie to her mother as well." Sora's mom stated in a laugh, causing the girl to emit a, 'Hey!'.

Laughing too, I patted Selphie's shoulder and told her, "See you soon."

"Yeah, yeah." She pouted as they began to walk off.

"Have fun," Sora's mom gave a final wave.

"Thanks!" I answered loudly in hopes it would reach her. I couldn't really see her reaction, so I wasn't sure if it did or not. Hearing the double doors of the locker room open, I turned to Sora.

He held a surprised expression as he questioned, "Wow, did everyone leave already?"

Nodding, I started to walk away as I replied jokingly, "Yeah, they all have lives; unlike us." Pausing for him to catch up with me, I flashed a grin as I added, "C'mon, let's get home so you can shower. We don't wanna miss out on our chance at a social life!"

"Psh," Sora stuck out his tongue and retorted, "We'll just be fashionably late."

Remembering my plain t-shirt and jeans that I called an outfit for the day, I thought aloud, "Joking aside, I should probably change before we go."

Holding the door open for me, the brunette answered with a shrug, "I don't think it really matters, Kairi. You look fine to me."

"Well, you love me; so your view is obscured. But to an average person, this is definitely too plain." I gave a frown as I pulled on the loose fabric of the t-shirt, moving across the parking lot to my car.

I heard him laugh from behind me, answering, "I guess you're right about me. Change if you want, but I'll still think you're beautiful; like you said."

"Thanks." I smiled at him before looking back down at my purse to find my keys. Eventually feeling the cool metal on my fingertips, I pulled them out and unlocked the doors.

As I started the car and began backing out, Sora offered, "I'll drive to the party since I kinda know the way there."

"You just want to show off your car, don't you?" I laughed.

Grinning at my assumption, he leaned back and in his seat and replied mischievously, "Maybe."

"I know you too well." I commented, keeping my eyes focused on the many taillights ahead of me.

Catching a side glance of his heart melting grins, I heard him say as he reached for the radio, "That's kinda what happens when you spend most of your life around someone."

The radio blasting on after he had pressed the button, I decided to not say anything else for the moment. It was weird how silence could just feel so _right_ sometimes. Maybe it was just the assurance that we both knew we were thinking about each other rather than all the other troublesome things in life.

Back at the apartment and with new clothes in hand, Sora killed the silence with a wide grin, "Wanna join me?"

Shoving him into the bathroom, I shook my head and laughed, "_No_."

"Okay, your loss." He winked before shutting the door.

Turning away, I rolled my eyes but quickly caught myself grinning. Opening the closet door and flipping through my shirts and shook my head again, "Oh, Sora…" Stopping at a black sweater that displayed my shoulders, I pulled it off the hanger and nodded, "This works. Now I don't have to change jeans, either." Moving over to the dresser, I dug out a strapless bra and started changing, knowing Sora would be in the shower for at least a few more minutes.

Spending the next few minutes fixing my hair, the brunette exited the bathroom with his still damp hair dripping onto his grey shirt. Clicking my tongue in a disapproving manner, I asked, "Why don't you blow dry it or at least let _me_ do it?"

"Nah," He shook his head, causing droplets to hit my face and made me squeal, "Oops, sorry." He wiped away the water with the back of his hand, smiling at my annoyed expression.

Looking up at him, I sighed, "Fine, but I don't wanna hear you complain it's too cold the second we step outside."

Scoffing, he answered with a rub of my back, "Kai, I play ice hockey. I think I'll be fine." Moving his arm around my waist and locking the other one around me, he rested his chin on my shoulder as he added, "If not, I'll just steal _your_ body heat."

Laughing and tilting my head against his, I changed the subject, "So what time do they expect us to be there?"

"Dunno," I felt the vibrations of his voice against my shoulder as he spoke, "but I guess we should get there early before everybody's way beyond just drunk."

"We should probably get going, then." I stood, Sora's arms gently sliding off as I did.

The situation with Ryou may have been way different in many ways, but I definitely did not want to be in a room full of drunk college guys, regardless. It was almost too inviting for something else to happen.

Walking down the stairs towards the parking lot, I questioned, "You're not planning on drinking, are you?"

He shook his head vividly, "Definitely not. And if they try to peer pressure me, all you have to do is say 'no' and that's all I need." He flashed a grin before reaching into his coat pocket to pull out his keys. Mashing the unlock button twice, we pulled open the doors and plopped ourselves in the car seats.

"Okay, good. I'm sure I don't even need to tell you this, but make sure no one spikes my drink, either." I smiled, meaning this in a joking way, but Sora ground his teeth together at the thought.

"Yeah, don't worry about that. I'm not gonna let anybody do anything to hurt you ever again." He promised, his jaw locked tight as he backed out of the parking spot.

Biting my lip, I kept silent for a few minutes. However, the radio wasn't turned on and allowed neither of us any distractions. Eventually, I cracked.

"Sora, you don't really still blame yourself for that, do you?" My voice barely came out above a whisper.

Letting out a heavy sigh, he asked, "How can I _not_? Not only once, but _twice_ he did that to you. I don't know which was worse, the time he dragged you away in front of me or when I had absolutely no idea what was going on until he made you call me. Either way, I failed to keep my promise…" I saw his eyes narrow and his grip tighten on the steering wheel.

Feeling a lump in my throat from his confession, I defended, "Ryou was sick and twisted. If you had tried to stop him you would have gotten hurt, or worse…" Feeling my eyes begin to water up at the thought, I sniffled, "And imagine if _that_ happened and you hadn't been there at _all_. What I'd have to go through everyday and I'd have to know that I lost you because you were trying to save me." A quiet sob escaped past my lips, tears already rolling down my face before I could even attempt to try and stop them.

His expression automatically softening, he reached out his hand and gently stroked his thumb against my cheek as he apologized, "Aw, Kai, I'm sorry… I am glad I _did _protect you as much as I could but I'm always going to wish I could have done _more_. I hate seeing you cry. You're so… just, breathtaking when you smile; that's why I'm always trying so hard to make you laugh." Pausing, he turned from the road toward me with a sheepish smile, "Not that you're not _always_ beautiful to me, like you said earlier. But if I could just, like, somehow show you how your eyes sparkle when you laugh, you'd understand."

Laughing and wiping my eyes with the ends of my sleeves, I answered, "Thanks. I don't even know what to say…"

"How about…" He trailed off with a finger mockingly to his lips, retrieving his hand from against my cheek before flashing a grin, "I love you?"

Beaming, I leaned forward to kiss his cheek and whispered against his shoulder, "I love you."

"I love you, too." He answered, then sighed, "Now, if only I could kiss you without being distracted."

"I appreciate the thought, but yeah; let's try to stay on the road." I giggled in reply before catching sight of my looks in the rear view mirror and frowning, "Oh, great. My eyes are bloodshot, I look horrible."

The boy rolled his eyes, "I won't repeat myself, but if you want we can just hang out in the parking lot for a little while."

"And do what, exactly?" I asked him in an amused tone, folding my hands in my lap.

Shrugging he answered, "I dunno. Talk… make out, whatever."

With a smirk, I stated, " I knew you'd say something like that."

Giving a quick, mischievous grin, he pointed out, "You can't try and say that it wouldn't make you feel better."

Nodding, I answered, "Well, yeah. But I already _feel_ better, my eyes are the issue. Not to mention that would mess up my hair, too." I added, running a hand through my crimson locks and flipping a few strands over my shoulder.

"Hm…I guess you're right." Sora scratched the back of his head with an exaggerated pout as we pulled into the parking lot of the foreign apartment complex.

Shaking my head, I pointed out, "You're not deprived by any means. Besides, it's the weekend. I think you'll survive a few hours."

"Oh, will I? I suddenly feel the urge to go run through the oncoming traffic on that highway right there." He joked with a point of his finger as he shut off the car and pocketed his keys.

Getting out of the car and meeting him in front of the trunk, I placed my hands on his shoulders and sighed, "Behave."

Giving an innocent smile, he leaned his head downward to kiss me on the cheek as he muttered, "I'll try, but I'm not promising anything."

Cracking a smile at his joke, I shook my head again and asked, "So, how are my eyes? Any better?"

Squinting through the dimly lit space between us, he trailed off, "Um…I dunno."

Laughing and slipping my arms back at my sides, I started to walk away, "Well, a lot of help you are." I commented in a sarcastic tone.

Jogging for a moment to catch up with me, he gave an overdramatic whine, "Sorry…" He blinked his eyes before giving a pout.

"So what're you doing this for? Won't you have to put on the whole tough guy, hockey player attitude for all the older guys once we step through the door?" I questioned in a light and joking tone.

Sora, however, always seemed to take things to heart. Frowning, he shook his head, "I'm nobody but myself. Maybe _more_ of myself around you, but I don't try to pretend to be anything I'm not."

Quickly hugging his shoulders, I stated, "I was just kidding, Sora. I know you don't, and that's one of the things I really like about you."

Flashing a grin, he stopped at a door and stated, "Oh, this is it."

And the loud music and drone of voices finally reached my ears. Smiling sheepishly, I answered loudly, "I really don't see how we didn't notice that beforehand."

Shrugging, Sora tapped his knuckles against the door loudly. In less than a fraction of a second, the door swung open to reveal the captain of the hockey team, with the music and the reek of alcohol pouring out as well.

Though I wrinkled my nose at the smell, I gave a polite smile and handshake to the captain and his girlfriend when they introduced themselves. Sora placing a hand against my back, he then led me through the sea of dancing people to find Jake.

"Hey Sora, Kai! You're late," He gave a grin, one of his hands wrapped around a red, plastic cup. It seemed pretty obvious he would be drinking and yet it still somewhat disappointed me in a way.

Shaking the thought off, I answered with a smile, "I made sure Sora was clean enough to walk around in public, first."

"Heh, nice." He chuckled before pressing the cup to his lips and taking a quick sip.

"So is everyone here already?" Sora questioned, craning his neck to see if he could identify anyone in the crowd. I still wasn't sure how so many people had managed to cram into an apartment, even if it was plenty bigger than ours was.

Taking a second to process the thought, the boy answered, "Yeah! Just walk around, you'll find everyone eventually."

"Okay, will do." Sora's hand pressed against my back again, signaling me to start walking away.

With a little wave, I said, "See you later, Jake."

Once out of hearing range of the other boy, Sora admitted, "I kinda figured this early on, but parties just really aren't my thing. I'm just gonna say hi to everyone and introduce you, then we'll go home. 'Cuz I know you don't really wanna be here, either."

Although I wanted to argue that point, I knew I'd be lying and if he even didn't want to be here, then there was no point in pretending to enjoy myself. With a sheepish smile, I scratched my head and answered, "…Okay." Circling the apartment for a few quick conversations, Sora and I managed to slip out of the door unnoticed.

"Sorry, again." Sora gave an apologetic smile, continuing, "I knew it was probably going to be the normal college trash party. But… I dunno. I just kinda hoped I was wrong?"

Giving a light pat on his shoulder, I answered, "Nah, it's fine."

Arriving back home to a dark apartment, the brunette raised an eyebrow at me before flipping on the light switch. Glancing to Riku's door and seeing it was shut, he commented, "Huh. Weird, I guess he went to bed already."

With a light nod, I answered, "Guess so." Shoving my purse on the kitchen counter, I began taking off my jacket with a smirk, "And I also guess that I should probably make up for saying no to your shower, earlier."

Intrigued, he also shed his coat and placed it on the back of a chair. "Go right ahead." He answered smugly, crossing his arms and giving an intent stare.

Rolling my eyes, I pointed towards the bedroom door, "That means go _this_ way." I took his hand and pulled him into the room.

Closing the door behind me, Sora took a seat on the edge of the bed and stated, "Still waiting…"

"Shut up," I said in a faked, angry tone before laughing and pressing my lips to his.

Leaning backward and breaking the contact for a split second, Sora muttered, "Done." His hands gently pressed on my back to ease me down to him, then smoothly wandered up and down as I began to kiss him again.

'_Wow. It's kind of awkward being on top…' _I thought with a nervous giggle between kisses.

Pulling away again, Sora gave a sheepish grin and asked, "What?"

"Switching." I answered quietly, my face heating up as I moved to the side of Sora.

Laughing, he reached over to brush my cheek with his hand, commenting teasingly, "Nice, Kairi."

Pouting, I closed my eyes and whined, "Don't make fun of me…"

Moving over me, he kissed my forehead and whispered sweetly, "I'm sorry."

Blinking my eyes open to his heart melting grin and sparkling sapphire eyes, I couldn't help but smile and sigh, "You're forgiven."

"Good." He gave an overdramatic sigh of relief before grinning again and closing the distance between us.

Only kissing for a few minutes, I felt his hand gradually began to make its way under my shirt and I pulled away. Frowning at myself, I looked away and stuttered, "S-sorry. It's just, since we brought up all the things with Ryou earlier it's just kinda at the front of my mind right now."

Heaving a clearly frustrated sigh, Sora lifted himself off of me and stood up, mumbling, "It's okay…" Reaching for the light switch, he held his hand over it and suggested, "Let's…just go to sleep."

"Well, let me change first." I stated with a deepened frown, this time directed towards him. His tone was really darker than normal, no matter how well he tried to hide it.

Glancing at my clothes, he replied in a monotone, "Oh. Right, sorry."

Giving him a quick, concerned stare, I slowly got off the bed and moved towards the dresser to get a pair of pajama pants and a t-shirt. I would save the talking for after I was done.

Rushing to change into my clothes and brush my teeth, I exited the bathroom to find the room completely dark. I closed my eyes and let out my own quiet sigh of frustration before nudging my way around the bed to my side.

Crawling under the blankets and just laying there for a minute, I spoke in what I thought to be a quiet level but my voice broke and it came out in a high pitched squeak, "I really am sorry, Sora." Hearing him turn over, I decided to stay in place in case any of the tears that were welling in my eyes decided to fall. That way he wouldn't see.

"I know, Kai." He answered sincerely but his voice was still clearly strained, "But you always egg things on and then randomly pull away and say it's too much."

He was completely right, too. I _always_ did that. Excluding the night Riku interrupted things, I had always been the one to initiate the heated 'make out sessions', if you could call them that, and then asked for him to stop at the last second.

Grimacing, my voice squeaked again as I whispered, "I don't mean to…"

The tears building up in my eyes finally rolled down my cheeks and I started sniffling. And God, I hated the sniffling because even after I was done crying it wouldn't stop for ten minutes or so.

I felt his arm move over my waist and felt his breath against my neck as he spoke, "I know…but still, it kinda hurts, Kai. It's almost like teasing, in a way. And like…I know it's stupid, but it's just kinda a low blow to my self esteem too. Just don't say or promise anything you're not sure of. Just let things happen _naturally_ for once. You know I don't want to rush you, Kairi. But you've gotta help me out."

"I'm so sorry." I muttered before turning over and starting to sob against his chest. Through sniffles and a cough, I managed to say, "You're absolutely right--I can't believe I didn't see…" I started crying again and Sora tenderly ran his hand through my hair in an attempt to comfort me.

"It's really not all your fault. I shouldn't have kept it to myself for so long. And I'm sorry for getting mad at you, too."

"But it is my fault," I cried quietly, adding, "And I deserved it."

Feeling Sora's arm at my waist pull me closer, I looked up at him with my tear-stained face and bloodshot eyes. "No, you didn't," He locked his eyes with mine, making his words have an undeniable truth to them, "and…look, I _hate_ seeing you cry. Especially when it's 'cuz of me. So, again… I'm sorry for holding my problems in, I'm sorry for being mean and making you cry, and I'm sorry for having way too high of a sex drive for my own good. I think that about sums it up." He gave a small smile that immediately reflected upon my own lips.

Sniffling and laughing, I replied, "And I'm sorry for being a tease, in my own weird way."

Still smiling, he kissed my forehead and lingered to whisper, "Goodnight."

"Night." I nestled against his chest, feeling so happy and relieved that it almost reminded me of the first time we slept together.

'_I don't wanna sound like a perv, but…I wanna sleep with you.'_ Oh, how my cheeks burned from those words. 

'What_?_' I blurted back.

He turned red too, exclaiming, '_Not like _that! _I mean like, just sleep._'

Opening my eyes and looking up at the older and yet, still the same, Sora, I gave a broad grin and let out a quiet happy, sigh. '_It's amazing how you're still mine…_'


	8. Look Where We Are

**Guess who's back?**

**Well, I mean. Yeah, I'm updating. But I'm referring to the fact that from now on, Fractured Love is from Sora's PoV.**

**I love this boy. More than life itself. Okay, maybe not really. But he is completely adorable and I love writing his character so much. This is where the real story begins. We're getting into the real points of FL, guys. And you'll read some surprising plans later on in this chapter although they should have been kind of blatantly obvious. Still, I hope you enjoy it!**

**PS: Sorry this is so short too. It's kind of an introduction chapter into Sora's thoughts as well as a few other things. The next chapter is when things really start heating up. **

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Seven

Look Where We Are

_I still remember the time_

_when this all felt like a dream;_

_so completely out of reach, frustrating…_

_We kept our nose to the grind_

_To make the days turn into weeks;_

_Hoping time will heal the pain of waiting._

_Now it seems so long ago…_

Blinking my eyes open to the ceiling, I frowned. It looked way too dark and _way_ too early for me to already be awake. Closing my eyes and sighing, I turned over and grasped for Kairi only to find air in her place.

Frowning again, I sat up and wondered, '_So is it dark cuz it's a rainy day or something? But why do I feel so tired…?_' Glancing over to the alarm clock and seeing it was only eight in the morning, I raised an eyebrow. '_What is she doing up this early_?' Sliding off the bed and dragging myself to the door, I opened it to see the redhead leaned over the kitchen counter as she scribbled down something on a notepad.

Hearing the crack of the door as I opened it, she whirled around and gave a sheepish smile, greeting, "Hey."

Looking at her unusually formal attire, I scratched the back of my neck and answered, "Hey. What's up…?"

"I have a job interview. I got so caught up in everything yesterday that I forgot to tell you." Looking down at the notepad on the counter, she closed it and muttered, "Guess I don't need to leave you that, anymore."

"Oh." I bit my lip, recalling the previous night. I hadn't really done much, but it was enough to make her cry so of course I put all the blame on myself. And she, of course, completely blamed _her_self. Now we had this awkward, on and off conversation that was getting us nowhere. "Well, good luck." I attempted to give a full smile but I just couldn't fake it. I was feeling terrible now, and there wasn't really a good way of hiding it more than I already was.

"Thanks." She gave one of her half-smiles, absent mindedly tapping a pen against the notepad on the counter for a moment before sliding her purse on her shoulder and stating, "Um, I should probably get going…"

"O-okay." The stutter surprised me but I quickly shook it off, pulling her into a hug and kissing her forehead with a mumble of, "See you later,"

First tensing at my touch, she slumped her shoulders and hugged me back for a brief second, nodding against my shoulder, "Yeah, see you later," She let go and gave another sheepish smile before walking out the door and closing it with a gentle 'click'.

Taking a seat at the kitchen counter, I clutched both sides of my head and let out a low groan. Waiting a minute to ensure that she wasn't coming back to pick up something she forgot, I finally let out all my frustration that had been building up in a yell, "DAMN IT!"

Dropping my head against the counter and banging it against the wooden surface a few times, I muttered repeatedly, "Why, why, why… I can be so _stupid_ sometimes."

'_Well, good luck_.' I repeated in my head, giving a mocking laugh, '_How convincing. You should have apologized again or _something. _Just not that.' _

Making a few more groans and sighs, I came up with one positive point, '_Well, we already apologized and stuff…so we just need to get things back on track._'

Sighing again, I dropped off the stool and onto the floor, declaring out loud, "I should probably just get out of this apartment for a few hours. That'll help get it off my mind…I think." Nodding enthusiastically, I retreated back into the bedroom for a pair of jeans and a shirt before heading out the door.

Getting in the car and twisting the ignition to bring the engine to life, I tapped my fingers against the steering wheel in thought, "Where can I go that it would nice and quiet?"

That was a really stupid question. It was eight thirty on a Sunday morning; _everywhere_ was quiet. But the park came to mind first.

Shifting the gear into reverse, I muttered, "Alright. Park, it is."

Within minutes I reached my destination, stepping out of the car to feel the cold, winter air against my face. Although it was the last day of November and wasn't _technically _winter yet, it sure felt like it already. Not to mention the fog hovering over the ground gave an eerie feel that made me feel even colder. Stuffing my hands in my pockets, I ignored it and began down the path through the park.

Surprisingly, there were actually other people up at this hour; two little boys playing soccer while their parents watched, sitting underneath a nearby tree. Smiling to myself, I took a seat on the nearest bench and watched their game for a few minutes before I thought of Kairi.

We'd been through so much now and yet it was so easy to screw everything up and have to start all over again. Just _hugging _had been awkward this morning. How long would it be before I could really kiss her again?

Days? Weeks?

Every time something like this happened, the outcome would be different. But the thing that frustrated me most was that I had never done anything to break Kairi's trust; it was just that her fear of Ryou overpowered her trust for me.

He wasn't even alive anymore and yet her fear of him was still controlling her. Even though I was there every day to make her laugh and enjoy life again, it was just never enough.

Biting down on my lip with excessive force, I questioned desperately, _'What can I do to make you trust me so much that it would be like Ryou didn't even exist? What could I possibly say…?_'

And then it hit me. No, not the idea that I was desperately waiting for--the soccer ball.

Feeling the throbbing of my head, I glanced down at my side to see the soccer ball and mumbled, "Ow…"

"Aah! I'm so sorry!" The older of the two boys rushed in my direction, his younger brother a few paces behind.

Grinning and shaking my head, I picked up the ball and tossed it to him, "It's okay. I've felt worse; I play hockey. I get beat up daily."

Letting out a small laugh, he turned back, "Sorry, again. C'mon, Gabriel."

"O-okay." First taking a glance back at me, the younger boy quickly chased after his brother.

Looking to the parents with their apologetic smiles, _that's_ when the idea hit me.

Most people my age could consider this thought as suicide but for me and Kairi, it just made sense. I don't know why I hadn't thought of it before. This upcoming week was Kairi's birthday as well as our third year anniversary. Of course, I loved Kairi way before I actually asked her out; I just wasn't brave enough to admit it to her. Not to mention Ryou was an issue…as always.

That confession was probably one of the hardest things I ever had to do in my life but with this new idea in mind, it made that day seem like _nothing_. "I love you" was just a daily thing now. She obviously knew I meant it but it was time for the next big step. The once in a life time question.

"Will you marry me?" Yeah, that was the idea.

Proposal.

Crazy? Maybe.

And no, this wasn't my desperate last idea for getting her to have sex with me. I honestly loved the girl to death and wanted her to know the extent of what I meant when I said that. I wanted her to forget about Ryou. Most of all, I just wanted to do anything that would make her happy. If she wanted a really long engagement because it seemed careless and stupid to marry at nineteen, that'd be fine with me. If she just flat out said no because of the age thing, that'd even be okay. Even though my self esteem would probably suffer from it. The sex would essentially be a part of getting married, but what I really wanted was her; completely. In every way possible.

I had loved this girl for the longest time and it seemed as if I was never going to have a chance to be with her. Now that I actually managed to keep a real relationship with her for a few years, everything should have been set in place; but it wasn't. We were closer than ever emotionally, but we were both also so much easier to break. We both knew exactly what frustrated the other and somehow we still managed to forget at the times when we needed to remember the most.

The physical part of our relationship, however, was definitely strained due to the barrier that Ryou brought on. Sex is obviously the closest you can be to a person, physically as well as emotionally. And although I could never complain about kissing or sleeping with her, it just wasn't enough sometimes. Not when I knew that she was just as tempted as me.

In truth, though I would never say this to Kairi, I was jealous of Ryou. Obviously not of the way he forced himself on her, but he had been with her in a way I hadn't. That even though her experiences with me would be completely different, but I still would never really be the first. And of course, the fact that since Ryou had been her first was the reason why I was having problems to begin with. This was all more of anger towards him, but the jealously was intertwined with those thoughts as well.

But if I proposed to Kairi; showed her that she basically was my life, that would have to be more than enough for her to trust me. It just _had_ to be enough. If not, I had no idea what else I could possibly do.

Sighing and giving somewhat of a relieved grin that I had at least managed to come up with something, I stood up and rushed off towards my car. Dropping into the drivers seat and closing the door behind me, I concluded, _'I guess I need to visit mom sometime to talk about the whole proposing thing… But I'll just do something short term for now, for an apology about last night. Like…cooking dinner for once?'_

Thinking about it for a moment, I sighed, "It'd be a nice surprise for her, but then again I don't want it to complete suck, either." Still, I figured it was best if I at least tried. So I ended up making a stop at the grocery store. For a minute I actually considered attempting a cliché candlelight dinner thing but I decided that would be a bit overboard.

Armed with ingredients to make a fairly decent dinner, I drove back to the apartment to relax and waited for Kairi to come home. Fate actually managed to work out in my favor, Kairi calling to say that Selphie wanted to start some Christmas shopping so she wouldn't be home till later.

Hanging up the phone with a broad grin, I rejoiced, "Perfect! That way I can actually get over half the cooking done without her trying to help out." Biting my lip, I sighed, "…assuming I don't burn down the building first."

Attempting to push that negative thought of my mind, I started turning the various electronics required to cook all of the food. Starting everything up, I flipped on TV so I had something to entertain me while I watched over all of the flammable content. I was only a little over halfway done before Kairi walked through the front door.

"Hey--wait," She stopped the door mid-swing, giving a confused expression, "you're…cooking?

With a wide grin, I glanced down at the stove before looking back to her and nodding, "Yep."

Scanning over the scene again, the redhead let out a bout of giggles and shut the door, commanding, "Alright. Let me help."

Stretching my arms and legs to block the archway into the kitchen, I pouted, "No, go away! This is why I started while you were gone. I knew you'd do this."

Crossing her arms, she laughed again and asked, "I appreciate the thought, but really. You? _Cooking_?" She gave a doubting stare.

"Hey, maybe I'm good at it. I've never really tried. So, shoo!" I waved my hands towards the living room, firmly keeping my ground.

Parting her lips, she only got to say, "But--" before I lightly grabbed her shoulders and turned her around.

"Nope. Go." I gave her a small nudge, smiling at her when she glanced back with an annoyed expression.

Sighing and throwing her arms up in defeat, she retreated into the living room with an exclamation of, "Okay, okay!"

Chuckling, I took a step back into the kitchen to check on the food. Everything still seeming to be going well, I watched in amusement as Kairi rapidly flipped through the TV channels. She would never be able to stop and focus on one thing while I was cooking without her help, so she continually mashed the remote to refrain from getting up.

Rolling my eyes with a grin, I edged my way out of the kitchen towards Riku's door. Holding my closed fist over the door, I stated loudly, "I'll get Riku so you have someone to distract you." She ignored me and I tapped my knuckle softly against his door, calling, "Riku?" Not hearing any sort of movement, I tapped harder against the door and called out louder, "Hey, Riku!" Only silence answered me again.

Cracking the door open, I found an abnormally clean room with a made bed and no clutter on top of the dresser. Raising an eyebrow in wonder, I took a step farther into the room and caught sight of a piece of paper laying on the dresser. "Huh." I quickly moved across the room and picked it up, holding it out in front of me and reading over Riku's scribble.

_Dear Sora and Kairi,_

_I'm really sorry for leaving so suddenly without saying anything to you. I can't really go into detail but my parents found out I was staying here and I don't want to put you two through anything else. I found my own place already but due to my parents, I'm trying to lay low for a little while; so I can't tell you where it is quite yet. Aside from that, I've been thinking about Ryou a lot. It was getting virtually impossible to look at Kairi and not think of him. It's just that…even though he was a complete bastard, it's kind of hard to grasp the fact that I killed a person. That I killed my own _brother_. I really need some time to be alone and think. Anyway, I'll call you as soon as I can. Again, I'm really sorry; for everything. _

_Riku_

"Sora?" I turned my head towards the doorway to see Kairi leaning against the door frame with a concerned look towards the note in my hands.

Folding it up and shoving it in my pocket, I looked up again and stated, "Riku's gone. His parents found out he was staying with us and he doesn't want to cause anymore trouble. And he's laying low for a while so we won't be hearing from him for a while…" I gave a grimace as I recited the information from the letter, deepening it as I bit my tongue to keep from mentioning the Ryou part of the letter. I was _not_ going to let things get awkward with Kairi again. Not when things seemed like they were somewhat going back to normal.

Frowning, she entered the room and sat on the edge of the bed, holding a hand against her forehead as she sighed, "Oh…" Pausing, she looked up and questioned in a small squeak, "Why does Riku always think he has to do everything on his own?"

Shrugging and taking a seat next to her, I answered, "I guess that's just how he's use to doing things."

Sighing again, she shook her head and stated quietly, "I hope he's okay soon."

"Me too." I let out my own sigh, then inhaled deeply. Catching a weird taste through the air that I inhaled, I froze. "What's that?" I questioned aloud as I sniffed the air before my eyes widened in realization that it was probably my cooking attempt burning.

Jumping up and running into the kitchen, there was a light layer of smoke over taking the room. Shutting the oven off with a few coughs, I waved my hand around in a desperate attempt for some fresh air. Only seconds behind me, Kairi slid open the balcony door so that the smoke would eventually flow outside.

Groaning loudly, I slumped against the wall behind me and whined, "I put in so much effort for nothing…"

"Don't worry about it, Sora. The idea was really sweet and I appreciate it, a lot. And just so you know, it _was_ actually looking pretty good before you found Riku's letter. I checked on it before I went into his room and saw you." Her voice became louder as I assumed she moved across the apartment towards me, eventually feeling one of her fingers tapping against my shoulder. When I looked up at her, she gave a light grin. Seeing her smile made it impossible for me to stop myself from mirroring her expression. She leaned into me and kissed my lips only long enough for me to blink, saying, "I'm sorry, again."

"You didn't really need to apologize again," I imitated her peck, adding, "But, I'm sorry again too." I added just incase it was needed. Hanging my head down again, I muttered with a scratch of my head, "I guess I need to go call for take-out now…"

Apology dinner made with my own hands? Failure. Apology dinner bought completely with my money? Checkmark. At least I couldn't screw that one up.

Looking up at Kairi as I dialed the number for the Chinese place, I couldn't help but give a small grin as I remembered what I had thought of earlier today. But first, I needed to have a serious conversation with Mom. And oh, how fun _that_ would be.


	9. Dark Blue

**LONGEST CHAPTER EVER. Not even kidding. It took FOREVER to write. So much stuff happens! And I just got RE: COM on Wednesday so I've kinda been distracted. Oh and I was in a car accident so my car is currently totaled. **

**I'm fine; I was rear-ended so I don't have to pay for anything and the only injuries I suffered were that my back hurt for like 3 weeks. The accident was on November 11****th**** and they said it's probably going to be like another month before I get my car back so I feel like I'm going to fail at life at driving when I finally get it back. And my mom and I are considering trading it in for something new since it's been hit twice now… **

**Anyway! Sorry this took so long. I always take forever. I wish I had a choice over whether school owned my life or not but I don't so yeah. **

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own any part about the Kingdom Hearts series and I don't own apple or the name iPod, I just own **_**a**_** iPod and copies of the all the KH games and love them.**

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Eight

Dark Blue

_Dark blue, dark blue  
Have you ever been alone  
in a crowded room _

_when I'm here with you?_

_I said the world could be burning till there's nothing but  
dark blue._

"Sora?" Kairi's voice called out softly, giving a light shove against my shoulder to wake me up.

Blinking my eyes open, I yawned back in reply, "What?"

"I thought of something. Riku can't really miss classes for a few weeks straight so we might run into him on campus, right? I don't think he could have transferred somewhere else already, do you?" Kairi questioned in a worried tone, although it carried the obvious excitement of her discovery.

Pulling the blanket halfway over my face, I replied tiredly, "I dunno, Kairi. But even when he lived with us, I never saw him around campus."

I heard her release a sigh of acknowledgement, "Yeah, I didn't either."

Shoving the blanket back at my waist, I turned over and comforted, "Hey, Riku can take care of himself. And don't worry, he will get in touch with us when he can." '_Although, I don't exactly know how long that's going to take with the Ryou thing…_' I thought bitterly, continuing out loud, "He isn't one to leave people hanging like that."

"I hope it's soon…" Letting out one last sigh, she turned and lifted herself off the bed, turning back to me to say, "I guess I need to start getting ready."

Nodding, I answered, "Okay." Remembering my plans to talk to my mom about proposing to Kairi, I called out loudly, "Hey, Kai. I think I'm going to go see Mom during lunch, so I probably won't be home till later."

Popping her head out of the bathroom, she asked curiously, "Okay… Any particular reason why?"

Feeling my face burn in embarrassment, I quickly lied, "I mean, I never see her really. Maybe for like five minutes tops after the games, but that doesn't really count for much. And we still have two weeks till break." Thankfully, Kairi was too distracted in trying to change clothes to notice my blush, if it was noticeable at all.

Pulling on her jeans with her focus towards the ground, she replied, "Yeah. I see what you mean." Her tone sounded a little disappointed, despite her obvious effort to make it sound convincing.

Quickly getting up out of bed, I snuck up on her and quickly grabbed her just as she finished pulling on her shirt. Letting out a small scream in surprise, she turned her head back and sighed in relief. Then, with a slightly aggravated tone, she asked, "Sora, what are you doing? I really need to get ready."

"I just wanted to remind you that tomorrow's completely dedicated to you, birthday girl." I whispered huskily into her ear as I pulled her closer, adding, "And it's our anniversary, too. So don't worry about me going to Mom's house today. Just hang out with Naminè and Olette or Selphie. Or go shopping, I dunno; whatever you want. But I'll be home after class, okay? And then for the next, like, forty something hours I'm your personal slave." Swiftly kissing her on the cheek, I asked softly, "Okay?"

Receiving a peck on the lips and a shove in return, she commanded sarcastically, "Stop being so good at sweet talking." Before closing the bathroom door in my face.

Chuckling, I walked back towards the bed and lazily stretched out across it. "I love getting to sleep in on Mondays!" I announced loudly to myself, smirking once I heard Kairi give a low growl from the bathroom.

"Shut up." She commented grudgingly, swinging open the bathroom door so that the light as well as the sounds from her getting ready would keep me awake for the next twenty something minutes. Giving a smirk of her own satisfaction, she retreated back into the bathroom to continue her process.

All I had to do was pull the blanket completely over my head and I was out again, until Kairi started poking me when she was getting ready to leave. " Sora?" She called out while tugging on the blanket that I had pulled tight over my face.

Sliding it down to my neck, I gave a raised eyebrow and asked curiously, "What?"

Nudging me so that I would move my legs over, she sat on the edge on the bed and gave a small laugh before answering with an, "I love you."

Grinning, I gave a mocking roll of my eyes and joked, "Oh, I see how it is. You wanna be nice _now_. After I already lost a precious five minutes I could have been sleeping." Looking back to her and seeing her bright smile, I raised my hands to the sides of her face and gently pulled her down to me, sharing a short kiss before I echoed, "I love you too. Have fun in class."

Rolling her eyes and getting off the bed, she answered sarcastically, "Oh, I will." Turning around to close the bedroom door, Kairi waved, "Bye, Sora."

"Bye, Kai." I answered before buying my face in the pillow again, dreading the second alarm that would signal it was time for me to get up.

Eventually having to drag myself out of bed, I felt a little more comfort in the fact that I was only going to see my mom rather than going straight to class after I woke up. Scratching the back of my head as I moved down the stairs towards the parking lot, I frowned at the though, '_Although, this might be worse then going to class…_'

Slipping into my car and quickly getting on my way, I was halfway to my Mom's house before I realized that I hadn't turned on the radio yet. Holding my finger over the volume button for a few moments, I furrowed my brow as I realized I really didn't want to listen to anything.

'_This is too weird. What's wrong with me?_' I gave a confused stare towards the steering wheel, hastily making a left turn. Jabbing the volume in spite of myself, the music quickly faded into garbled words that made no sense in the maelstrom of my thoughts.

'_I don't even know what I'm going to say to her_. _I just said that I was going to lunch so we could talk, but she probably knows it's something serious and I can't lie and say it was nothing now_.' Letting out a low growl at my own stupidity, I sighed as I turned onto the street of my mom's house, "But I guess it needs to be said, so I shouldn't blow it off."

Pulling into the driveway, my mom was already waiting at the front door. She opened the glass door as I got out of my car, asking in a worried tone, "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing bad," I promised, mustering a small smile as I shut the door to my car and made my way up the stairs of my old house, "But we do need to talk."

"That does absolutely nothing for me except for make me worry more." She answered as she shut the door behind me, mirroring my small smile once she turned around.

Grinning a bit wider, I answered, "Sorry."

Shaking her head and taking a step forward, she asked, "You want something to eat or drink…?"

Walking into the living room and plopping down on the couch, I locked eyes with her and replied, "Nah. Thanks, Mom, but I really should just get this out."

Nodding seriously, she took a seat in the armchair directly across from where I sat, asking curiously, "So what is it, if it's nothing bad?"

"I've been thinking a lot, since Kairi and I had a kinda fight the other day." I started off, glancing off towards the clock that hung over the fireplace as a distraction.

"What was the fight about?" Mom interjected and I made eye contact with her again, letting out a sigh.

'_This is exactly the part that I was dreading_.' I sulked in my head before answering out loud, "You know about the stuff that went on in sophomore year…Ryou. She hasn't exactly gotten over it."

With a disapproving frown, my mom retorted somewhat angrily, "Of course not, Sora! That's not something you can just forget about--"

"Mom, I _know_." I quickly cut her off, defending myself, "And I've already told Kairi millions of times that I'd never do anything that she wasn't comfortable with and she knows that. But it's always Kairi that's egging things on, so I think that it's okay, but then she backs out at literally the last second and says it's too much. I know it's obviously not her fault but I can't stand that Ryou is still controlling her life. It's eating away at me."

"Understandable. But even if the Ryou situation is a big contributor to this, are you sure you're not pressuring her? Even indirectly?" She quirked an eyebrow in curiosity.

My frown deepening, I answered in a low tone, "I don't think so… I make a few jokes here and there, like about showering together. She always just rolls her eyes about it, though."

"Just because she acts like it's nothing doesn't mean she completely ignores the implications behind it." My mom pointed out, giving an apologetic smile after catching sight of my now frustrated expression.

Letting out a deep sigh, I rested my head against my closed fist and muttered, "Yeah…"

Furrowing her eyebrows again, she questioned in a confused tone, "I thought you said what you wanted to talk about wasn't bad?"

"Well, it wasn't. but you had me explain the fight and now I'm caught up thinking about that." I bit my lip, replaying random clips of conversations with Kairi in my head; trying to decipher which ones, if any, that she seemed as if I were pressuring her.

Leaning forward in the chair she was seated in, my mom further questioned, "So what _did_ you come here to talk about…?"

Opening my mouth, the only word I managed to get out was, "I…" before my mind ceased to function and my face lit up instead.

Narrowing her eyes in suspicion, she echoed, "You…what?"

"I was…" I babbled, eyes darting wildly across the room out of nervousness before I admitted in a mumble, "…I was thinking about proposing…"

Wearing a bright expression for a split second, she straightened her face and questioned, "Not to sound like I'm disapproving, but you thought about this after and Kairi had a _fight_?"

"I did, but it's not like that Mom." I replied, expecting her contradiction, "It's not like a desperate attempt for me to fix anything between us. Even though I do want her to trust me, more than anything. But Mom, you should know better than anyone how long I've been in love with Kairi. It may have started off as childhood puppy love, or whatever, but these feelings have been there for as long as I can remember. I know nineteen is a little young for this sort of thing too, but it seems so…right. I mean, in a way it kind of seems like we're already married. How we live together and I guess just how we treat each other; all we need is the official title, really. …I don't know, I'm rambling."

My speech brought back Mom's jubilant expression as well as a spark within her eyes. Watching her in curiosity, she practically jumped out of the chair and moved quickly up the stairs stating, "Wait here."

"Uh…okay." I raised an eyebrow in curiosity, watching her disappear into her room. Hearing her dig around upstairs, I began to tap my feet impatiently against the floor; curiosity keeping me literally on the edge of my seat.

She eventually came back down the stairs, nothing visible in her hands. I gave a confused stare as she returned to the seat across from me. Putting on a serious expression again, she started, "After hearing you say all of that, I feel better. But I still want you to think this over very seriously."

Nodding, I answered sincerely, "Of course."

Reaching into her coat pocket, she pulled out a black velvet box and I immediately gaped.

"Oh, Mom. No _way_, that's yours. I couldn't…" I quickly spit out, not allowing her the chance to talk. It was the engagement ring that my Dad had given her and it was probably the closest tie that she had left to him. Just thinking about it made my eyes start to water.

Shaking her head and placing the box in my lap, she explained, "It's so amazing how alike you are to your father, although I'm sure I've only told you a hundred times. But each year you get older, I see more and more of him in you. You and your Dad were practically best friends; I know he wouldn't want this to be any other way. Besides, it would especially thrill me to see that ring on Kairi's finger rather than just seeing a little box collecting dust in my closet."

Feeling her hand on my shoulder, I looked up to her sincere smile and trailed off, "But…"

"No buts. Take it," She paused before winking and finishing, "Or die."

Letting out a laugh, I looked down to the velvet box and back up again to confess, "This really means a lot to me, Mom. And it'll probably mean a lot to Kairi, too. She feels like she's never had a real family; so the fact that you're giving me this to give to her will probably mean more to her then she can ever say. Thank you."

I stood up and outstretched an arm, to which she also stood and hugged me tightly, answering, "She should know that I've basically already considered her my daughter for years now. But you're welcome." Letting go, she glanced at the clock and questioned, "Sora, what time did you say you need to be in class?"

"Two. Why?" I answered absentmindedly as I carefully pocketed the engagement ring.

Nodding towards the clock, she pointed out with an amused smile, "It's one thirty, you probably want to get going."

Frowning and jumping up, I exclaimed, "Gah! Yeah, I _really_ need to go. I'm probably gonna be late. See you later, Mom." I gave a quick hug before rushing towards the door, turning back one last time to add, "Thanks, again."

"Remember to really think about it!" She called out in a serious tone.

"Kay!" I answered before closing the door behind me and unlocking my car, dropping into the drivers seat before speeding off towards campus.

I got there somewhat on time; at least, for my standards. But I was so dazed out for that whole class that it wouldn't have much mattered if I wasn't there at all. Not only did I need to think about what my mom had said but I also needed to decide what the heck I was going to get Kairi for her birthday. Dinner worked for the anniversary part, and I had enough saved up for a pretty decent one.

'_I know Kairi almost completely inside and out and I just come up blank for gifts every time. I guess I could always give in and ask Selphie for help_…' I frowned at this idea. Selphie would want me to go completely overboard. Even though she's Kairi's best friend, she just didn't understand that Kairi liked simple things rather than outrageous.

To this day, she still asks how much I spent on that necklace that I got for her three years ago, even though I know she would never give it up even if I told her. So I don't.

I smiled at this thought before I realized that everyone else around me was getting up, signaling that class was dismissed. Shoving my stuff into my bag, I quickly made my way towards the door before I hear and exclamation of, "Hey, Sora!"

Turning around to see Roxas walking towards me, I answered, "Yo."

"Hey…" The blonde answered with what seemed to be a forced smile.

Raising an eyebrow in curiosity, I asked, "What's up?"

Shoving his hands in his pockets and walking out the door, he answered in a mutter, "It's about Naminè and Olette."

Following him out the door, I titled my head and questioned further, "What about them? Is Naminè mad that you hang out with Olette a lot since she's your best friend or whatever?"

"Nah, not that. But…ugh. The more I hang out with Olette, I feel like Naminè is the one that's just a friend. Get what I'm saying?" He let a sigh, pausing in front of what I assumed to be his car.

Nodding and biting my lip, I replied, "Yeah. Man, that sucks but you really just have to sit down and figure out who you want as a friend and who you want to be more than that. But even before you do that, you've gotta say something to Naminè. Because if you're hanging out with Olette in their dorm and you end up kissing her…If Naminè walks in, you're not going to be able to be friends at all."

Nodding solemnly, Roxas stated, "I know. I know Naminè is going to end up crying no matter what I do, and that makes me feel like the worst person in the world. I do love her a lot, just maybe not the way I thought I did… And if I make Naminè cry, then Olette will probably be pissed off at me too for hurting her and I'll just completely hate myself for that too. Not to mention I don't know how Naminè and Olette's friendship will hold up through this."

Clicking my tongue and giving a sympathetic wince, I answered, "Oh yeah, ouch. Especially since they're roommates. They're going to have to be around each other, even if they don't want to be."

"Yeah… I really have no clue what to do. I feel like any choice I take ends up with something being horribly wrong." Roxas hung his head low and he slumped backwards against his car.

"I dunno, man, but it's up to you to decide what's wrong. I don't really know what else to tell you." I concluded with a cross of my arms.

Nodding and straightening his posture, the blonde answered, "Yeah, thanks. I guess I should get going." He pulled out his keys and pushed the unlock button on his remote.

"See ya," I turned, heading for my own car.

Before closing his door and driving off, he echoed in a less enthusiastic tone, "See ya…"

'_That was…kinda random, but wow._' I commented as I got into my car. Turning the key to start the engine, I realized I still hadn't come up with a gift idea for Kairi. Slapping a hand against my fore head, I muttered, "Crap. Gah, I only have like three more hours for this. Think, think, think…" I tapped my fingers anxiously against the steering wheel.

Heaving a sigh, I thought, '_I guess I could propose, but then Mom will assume I didn't think about it. Which, I mean, I haven't really…_'

And then I had my second sort-of-epiphany.

I could get a kitten or a puppy since having a pet is kinda like having a kid, in a way. That would test whether we could handle raising a family which tied into the proposing idea, whenever I got around to it. Also, I was pretty sure Kairi had never had a pet so she would probably like it a lot.

'_Assuming she doesn't have a phobia of cats or dogs that I've never known about_…' I let out a nervous laugh before turning on the radio and backing out of the parking spot. '_So I guess I need to hold off on buying anything until I know what Kairi wants._' I deducted, taking my normal route rather than going the opposite direction towards a shopping center. Smiling a bit, I thought, '_Kind of makes my life easier since Kairi can just pick whatever she wants and I just pay_.'

Absentmindedly singing along with the radio, it didn't take long before I was back at the apartment. Knowing it'd be another hour or two before Kairi got home, I turned on the TV and sprawled out across the couch. Leaving whatever the channel was on when I turned on the TV, I pulled the engagement ring from my pocket. Opening the box and pulling the ring out of it, I held it in-between my fingers and examined it closely.

The band was mostly silver with some gold in the center of it that slowly got wider until it the entire band was gold right where the heart-shaped diamond was. Alongside the main diamond, there were also two smaller ones on each side. It was extravagant, and yet simple at the same time.

Safely storing it inside its box and putting it back in my pocket, I closed my eyes and grinned, '_Kairi will like it. But…where am I supposed to hide it until I need it?_' I didn't think there would ever be a time where Kairi would ever have to go through my drawers in the dresser but I didn't really feel like taking the chance either. '_Riku's room is too empty now that he's gone…and my coat pocket won't work because I don't know how long I'm going to be carrying it around_.'

Tapping my fingers against the couch, I considered, '_I guess I can always keep it at Mom's in my room or something. And I know Mom wouldn't lose it or give anything away like Selphie would.'_

Deciding that was probably the best plan, I finally let myself rest and sink into the couch. Flipping through a few channels and finding nothing of interest, I left it on the news and closed my eyes. A few hours later, I woke up to the sound of jingling keys and the lock turning.

Swinging the front door open, she greeted happily, "Hey, Sora."

Blinking and sitting up, I turned my head around and asked tiredly, "…Wha?"

Closing the front door before making her way over to the couch, she loomed over me and repeated, "I said _hi_. Seriously, Sora, I think you sleep at least four more hours than a normal person." She giggled, placing her purse on the coffee table and taking a seat beside me.

Giving a small smile, I replied with a shrug, "It's possible." As she shifted closer to me, I quickly became paranoid as I remembered the ring just happened to be on the side of me that she was leaning against. Quickly getting up and receiving a confused store for doing so, I lied, "Hold on a sec. It's kinda hot with this jacket on."

Hanging the jacket over a chair, I subtly shoved the box deeper into the pocket before turning around and apologizing, "Sorry."

Still looking confused, she replied, "It's okay." Before she turned around again.

Sneaking behind her, I leaned over the back of the couch and wrapped my arms around her shoulders, asking softly, "Hey, Kai?"

Looking up with an embarrassed smile, she questioned back, "Yes?"

"What do you think about making a little addition to our two person family?" I whispered into her ear, knowing very well what she was going to assume.

Right on cue, her face turned scarlet and she exclaimed, "Sora! I--we--"

Bursting out into laughter, I retracted my arms and walked around the couch, answering with an amused tone, "I was talking about getting a pet, Kairi." Taking my place beside her, I continued with a wink, "Although, I'd like your assumption in a few years, of course."

First letting out a laugh, Kairi exhaled and admitted, "You practically gave me a heart attack with the way you worded it. But yeah, that's really sweet, Sora. I'd love that."

"Good. Then you're going with me to the pet store place tomorrow so you can pick out something. Cat, dog; whatever you want. I don't have an issue with anything and it's your birthday so…have at it." I smiled, relieved at her excitement towards the idea.

With a shy smile, she answered in a sort of murmur, "I've kind of always wanted a kitten."

Nodding along, I answered, "Kitten it is then. Now you just need to go pick out the perfect one and stuff."

Laughing at me, she then wrapped her arms around me and mumbled softly, "Thank you."

Shrugging and returning the embrace, I replied, "It's your birthday and our anniversary so I want it to be special. Oh, speaking of, I have a place for dinner in mind as well."

Pulling backwards, Kairi frowned and stared into her lap, muttering, "You really spoil me. Like, a lot."

Leaning downward, I answered sincerely, "Because you deserve it." Kissing her and pressing her backwards, I broke away with my eyes locked on hers as I commanded, "And I don't want to hear other wise."

Letting out a sigh, she smiled with her eyes closed and answered, "Fine." Leaning back in and kissing her a few more times, she broke away and sighed again, stating sheepishly, "I should probably get started on dinner before we're both starving to death."

Sitting up straight, I offered enthusiastically, "I'll help you!"

Smiling, she scratched the back of her head and replied, "O-okay." Getting up off the couch, I turned around and scooped Kairi into my arms. At this, Kairi scoffed playfully, "Hey, not necessary."

"I know, but I wanted to." I grinned as I placed her on her feet, keeping my hands atop her shoulders.

Staring back at me for a minute or so, Kairi turned away and whined, "Sora, cut it out. You're making me blush like crazy."

Returning my hands to my sides, I replied in a chuckle, "Sorry." I quickly switched my attention towards the food we started preparing although I gave Kairi the occasional side glance.

It was pretty much a daily occurrence, but apparently Kairi never seemed to notice until tonight since she was doing her own side glancing towards me. Every time she made eye contact with me, her cheeks let up and she hastily went back to whatever she was doing. Since Kairi had primarily done most of the cooking, this dinner actually turned out to be decent despite how I was constantly slowing her down with my flirting as well as my errors with the food.

All though dinner as well as while she was getting ready for bed, she talked about what kind of cat she wanted. How it would look, how it would act; everything. She was like a kid on Christmas Eve, waiting for Santa.

Laughing a bit, I slipped under the blankets and commented, "Wow, I'm glad I thought of such a good idea for once. But don't you wanna, you know, sleep?" I turned over to her with a smirk.

Giving an embarrassed smile, she answered, "Sorry."

I kissed her and shook my head, "It's fine. Besides, I just realized tomorrow is the one day out of the week we actually have class together so that works out nicely."

"Mhm," She gave a small nod before scooting closer to me, intertwining her legs with me and muttering in an embarrassed tone, "It's cold…"

Swiftly pulling her closer so that was she was closely pressed against me, I cocked an eyebrow and stated, "Somehow, I don't believe that."

Smirking, she admitted, "Okay, you caught me. Kind of. I am a _little_ cold."

Rolling my eyes at her unnecessary defense, I kissed her forehead and murmured, "Night, Kai."

"Night, Sora." She echoed sweetly before nestling her head against my chest.

Immediately closing her eyes, I smiled to myself at how cute her seemingly sleeping form was. Reaching upward and running a hand through her crimson hair without really thinking about it, she peeked an eye open at me in curiosity. "Sorry, couldn't help it." I admitted in a laugh, she shaking her head at me in amusement before closing her eyes again. Combing my fingers through her hair a few more times, I eventually fell asleep.

When the alarm went off the next morning, I quickly whined, "Ah, don't move; it's cold."

Squinting her eyes, Kairi repeated my words from the previous night mockingly, "Somehow, I don't believe that. Especially you, Mr. Upcoming-Star-of-the-Hockey-Team."

"Aw, fine. Be that way. But anyway," I quickly sat up, leaning over her and whispering, "Happy birthday and anniversary."

Between kisses, she answered, "Thank you." Then breaking away from me, she asked in a laugh, "Did you ask me out on my birthday so you'd only have one date to remember?"

Rolling my eyes, I answered sarcastically, "Yeah, of course." Thinking about the day I asked her out, I let out an embarrassed laugh and continued, "But seriously, do you know how hard that was? Kissing you and walking away without seeing your reaction was one thing. Straight out confessing to you, I felt like I was gonna die or something." I laughed again, thinking about how all of the anxiety wasn't necessary at all.

Giggling, Kairi cooed, "Aw. Well, I was so confused after you kissed me I didn't even know if it actually happened."

Furrowing my brow, I joked, "Wow, I really sucked _that_ bad?"

"No!" Kairi let out even more giggles, shoving me as she got up from the bed and pointed out, "We should start getting ready. Oh, I'll give you your present before we leave though since you already told me what mine was last night."

Raising an eyebrow in interest, I sat up and replied, "Okay. In that case, you can have the bathroom first."

Shooting me a 'you-can't-be-serious' look even though she laughed, she collected her clothes and walked past me, "Um, thanks?"

After she closed the bathroom door, I called back enthusiastically, "You're welcome!" Getting clothes and tossing them on the nightstand, I crawled back under the blankets and closed my eyes as I wanted for Kairi to be done with her shower.

Just as I was comfortable enough to fall asleep again, I heard the sound of the shower cut off and yawned, "Damn."

Kairi exiting the bathroom with dripping hair and a handful of hair products, she waved a hand at me to signal me to get up. Groaning and throwing the warm covers off, I dropped out of bed and stumbled into the brightly lit bathroom after retrieving my clothes off the nightstand. As I showered and got dressed, I wondered what Kairi had possibly gotten me.

Exiting the bathroom I found her sitting on the bed and twiddling her thumbs, a bright blue box sitting in front of her. Noticing me and lifting her head, she widened her eyes and pushed the box in my direction, "Not to be mean but this may be a part of your Christmas present unless I get a call about that job."

"That's fine," I answered absentmindedly as I lifted the box off the bed and held it in front of me. Ripping off the paper, I saw the distinct apple logo and the word 'iPod' on the box. Blinking in surprise, I exclaimed, "Wow, Kai! Thanks!"

Giving an embarrassed smile and scratching the back of her head, she answered, "You always forget your CDS going back and forth so I figured you'd like it…"

Laughing and placing the box on top of the dresser so that I could mess with it later, I replied, "Definitely! C'mon, let's go to class and get it over with so you can go get your present." I wrapped an arm around her shoulders and eased her upwards.

Sighing, she pointed out, "I hope you now I'm not going to be able to focus at all during class."

Pulling her in the direction of the front door and handing her school stuff off the kitchen counter to her, I rolled my eyes, "You'll survive. It's just one day."

And she kept her word, being very fidgety all during class and practically jumped out of the car when I pulled into a parking spot at the pet store. Grabbing onto her shoulders, I pointed out in a laugh, "Hey, you're gonna have to slow down unless you wanna get hit by a car or something."

"Sorry." She answered in a quiet tone for what I felt like was the thousandth time today, now tapping her fingers against each other as she tried to hold all of her energy in.

She rushing through the sliding glass doors, I followed along behind her as she found the area where they kept all the cats. Finally pausing at a kennel on the bottom, I lowered myself beside her and asked, "Which one ya looking at?" Inside the kennel, there was an orange tabby, a black and white spotted one, a gray tabby and one that was completely black.

Poking a finger through the metal bars, she answered, "The black one." That same kitten she was watching immediately walked over to her finger and sniffed it, then reached out with one paw and tapped her finger before jumping backwards.

Both of us letting out a laugh, I commented, "Cute. So, definitely that one, then?"

Still wagging her fingers in front of the kitten and not looking at me, she nodded enthusiastically, "Mhm."

"Kay. Well, we need to get a bag of food and a litter box at least for now. We can come back later this week and you can get nine thousand toys or whatever. So I'll get the kitten if you'll go get the stuff. And just get those like temporary, pre-made travel litter box things they have instead of getting one of those huge bags."

Nodding again and standing up, she stood on her tip toes and kissed my cheek, whispering excitedly, "Thank you, thank you, thank you!" With that, she rushed off and I glanced around for an employee.

Finding one, I inquired, "Uh, sir, I was wondering if I could get that black kitten over there?"

Rather than answering me, he questioned back, "Was that your girlfriend that was just over there looking at it?"

Blinking and trying my hardest not to raise an eyebrow at the guy, I answered with a scratch of my head, "Yeah. It's her birthday and our anniversary."

Walking over to the area where the cats are kept, he commented, "Looks like she likes your gift."

Giving a bit of a nervous laugh, I replied, "Heh, yeah."

Opening the kennel door, picking up the kitten, and locking the door back, he handed it to me and explained, "There you go. The cashier at the front of will ring the price up with whatever you get."

Trying to keep the kitten from wriggling out of my hands, I answered, "Thanks." Looking up to see Kairi carrying a pretty big load of stuff, I questioned with a wince as the kitten lightly bit my finger, "Hey, wanna trade? It's biting me and trying to escape."

Laughing and putting her stuff down in front of me, she held out her hands and replied, "Sure."

"There you go," I gently passed it to her before grabbing the things off the floor and started heading towards the cash register, "Got everything we need, right?"

"Right." Kairi echoed, then started talking with the cash register lady about the kitten as we approached her, I making the occasional short answer as I pulled out my ATM card and paid for everything.

On the way home, I thought out loud, "Guess we can't really go out for dinner, can we?"

"We could…but we probably shouldn't leave the kitten alone already. It's already probably already going to be scared enough being a new place." I heard Kairi answer as I eased to a stop at a light.

"That's what I was thinking. Um, well I guess I could try cooking myself again. But like something easier; I was thinking spaghetti, probably?" I improvised for my slightly ruined plans, adding, "And I could always break out some candles or something."

Giggling at the last part, she answered, "Okay, sounds good. But I _will_ help if I smell something burning."

"Psh, you wouldn't notice with that kitten to distract you." I retorted, turning to smirk at her.

"Possibly true." She admitted, looking down and petting the kitten's head.

The kitten currently kind of confused, making circles in Kairi's lap and occasionally letting out a distressed mew to which Kairi would coo that it was almost home. When we _did_ get home, it was just as energetic and hyper as it was in the pet store; zipping in and out of rooms at the speed of light as I set things up for dinner.

Putting the spaghetti in the water, I asked curiously, "Hey, Kai, do you have a name for it yet?"

"Midnight." She called back from the living room.

Nodding to myself, I replied as I dug through the cabinets for candles, "Nice."

After finding them, putting them on the table, lighting them, and finishing dinner, I managed to pull Kairi away from the kitten to come and sit with me. Shrugging, I commented, "It's not exactly the fanciest candlelit dinner ever, but it works."

With a bright smile, she shook her head, "No, it's perfect." Pausing, she let out a small laugh and corrected, "Well, I haven't tried your cooking yet. But I bet it's good! It smells good."

Laughing, I rolled my eyes and answered sarcastically, "Well, thanks, Kairi."

Wrapping some around her fork and popping it into her mouth, she completed, "It _is_ good! Try some."

Giving a doubting look at my plate, I mirrored her actions and raised my eyebrows in surprise, "Hey, not bad."

"Told you so." She stuck her tongue out at me before she started eating again.

Smiling, I kept quiet as did she for the rest of dinner. When we were both finished, Kairi spoke quietly, "Thanks a lot, Sora. Today was perfect."

"Perfect, huh?" I repeated, thinking of the engagement ring in my pocket. '_I know Mom told me to think about it… but saying something like 'Then will you make mine perfect?' or something like that right now just seems like the best opportunity I'm gonna get._' I thought, my heartbeat rapidly increasing as I stuck my hand in my pocket and felt the velvet box. Standing up out of my chair and almost tripping over Midnight, I let out a nervous laugh and instantly lost my nerve. Picking up my plate and hers from the table, I finished with a grin, "I'm glad."

Walking into the kitchen, I sighed to myself, '_Damn. God knows when I'll feel good enough to even _consider_ attempting to do it again. I guess at least Mom gets her wish this way._'


	10. If You Could Only See

**It's been four months since I've updated… SERIOUSLY!? Why haven't you guys like tracked me down and tried to kill me by now? That's just ridiculous. And I don't really have a real excuse, either. Besides the musical.**

**Well, in that whole time period I've:**

**1. Gotten a boyfriend. It's my Sora, again; Kurt, if you remember from back in the day when I was writing Shattered Dreams.  
****2. Done my school's musical. Guys and Dolls. I was body mic crew head again.  
****3. Turned 17 and went to my great grandmother's funeral on my birthday. I didn't know her, so wasn't really sad. That was April 17****th****, if you're wondering.  
****4. Went to a playoff hockey game at which I saw Jake when I was there XD. And I got one of the new black jerseys so yaaay.**

**Think that's most of the major events besides the fact I didn't go to prom. I'm saving it for next year. I'm also hoping some miracle will happen and I'll be able to go with Kurt but I really doubt it lol. ANYWAY, I'm sorry I take so long. Enjoy?**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Kingdom Hearts of the song "If You Could Only See" by Tonic for which this chapter is named after.**

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Nine

If You Could Only See

_If you could only see the way she loves me,  
then maybe you would understand…_

_Why I feel this way about our love_

_and what I must do._

_If you could only see how blue her eyes can be_

_when she says…_

_When she says she loves me._

XOXO

"You miss her too, huh?" I spoke aloud to the black kitten curled up on the pillow next to my head.

It was winter break already, so I was staying at my Mom's house. Kairi was staying at Selphie's house because it seemed more normal and whatnot. Selphie and her mom had never had a pet in their house before and we obviously couldn't leave Midnight alone at the apartment, so I got the job of taking care of her. Not that I minded, I just knew Kairi probably missed her. And Midnight missed her in return, I thought, seeing as she faithfully slept on the pillow next to my head where Kairi normally was every night.

Most of all, _I_ missed Kairi. It was weird waking up to an empty bed and it seemed like it took me hours to go to sleep because I'd be up all night thinking about anything and everything that came to mind. But the strangest part was that I still saw her every day. It seemed stupid to miss her because she was right down the street. But I was so used to seeing her twenty-four/seven that a five minute walk felt like she was eight hours away.

"Sora? You awake yet?" My Mom yelled from downstairs, interrupting my thoughts.

Sitting up in my bed, I called back, "Yeah!" Reaching over to pat Midnight on the head, I yawned, "Gotta go eat breakfast." Dragging myself down the stairs and into the kitchen, I took a seat at the table and greeted lazily, "Morning."

"Morning," She greeted cheerily, sliding a plateful of food towards me and taking the seat across from me with her own plate, "So what are you doing today?"

Swallowing a mouthful of bacon, I shrugged and answered, "I'm playing a street game with Jake and Tidus, and I guess that's it, really."

Nodding and quietly munching on her food, she allowed a few minutes before questioning, "So have you thought anymore about proposing?"

Feeling the food scratch against my throat as it went down, I nodded, "…Yeah."

"So?"

"Er… Well, one reason I got Midnight is to see if we can handle taking care of something other than ourselves. You know, for future reference." Smiling a bit to myself, I commented, "But Midnight basically is like a baby to Kairi. She comes over here so much just to see her; not me." I joked.

Rolling her eyes and laughing at the last part, she replied sarcastically, "I'm sure. But that's a good start, really. Anything else?"

Looking up towards the ceiling and racking through my brain, I eventually shook my head, "…No. Not really." Receiving somewhat of a disapproving stare from her, I let out a heavy sigh and defended, "I'm trying, Mom; I really am. This kinda thing is like the only thing I try to be a perfectionist with and it screws up my brain."

Letting out a laugh at this, she patted my shoulder in sympathy, apologizing, "Sorry, I'm just kind of excited now. I know I'm the one telling you to not rush into things and all, but I honestly can't wait at the same time."

"Heh, Mom. You just made it even more confusing. Hurry, but take your time." Finishing the last of my food, I rose out of my chair and grabbed my plate.

As I walked over to the sink to drop my plate in it, my Mom corrected herself, "What I mean is…just do it when you're ready."

"Still doesn't do much for me." I grinned back at her, "Well, I'm gonna go find out what time I should be going to Tidus's. Knowing my sleeping pattern, Jake's already there and I'm late."

Standing up and walking over to the sink to get rid of her own plate temporarily, she ruffled my hair and replied, "Okay, honey. Just be home by six because I invited Kairi over for a bit."

Making my way towards the stairs, I called back sarcastically, "Thanks for making plans without me!"

"No problem!"

Smiling to myself, I went into my room and quickly changed clothes after I saw the time was already noon. Deciding I might as well just leave at this point, I gave Midnight another quick pet as I passed the edge of the bed, "Be back later; with Kairi." On my way out the front door, I thought, '_Playing hockey will be nice; I can let go of this proposal stuff; for a little while, anyway.' _

Just as I expected, Jake was already in full gear and skating around impatiently when I arrived at Tidus's house. "Hey," I greeted before pausing and raising an eyebrow, "Where's Tidus?"

"In here." He took a step out of his garage, revealing that he was still in the process of getting his skates on. "The pair you always borrow is over there." He flung an arm backwards, his attention set on the many buckles on the skate he trying to keep on his foot.

Nodding, I moved towards them, "Thanks."

Managing to get my skates on maybe only ten seconds after Tidus had finished his own, the younger boy rolled his eyes at me and muttered, "Whatever."

"C'mon, lets get this party started." Jake tapped his stick against the pavement.

"We're not on the clock; it doesn't matter much." I reminded him with a shrug.

Shrugging back, he answered, "Still."

"How _is_ playing for college?" Tidus inquired curiously, backing into his net.

"It's fun," I dropped the puck in front of me, "But it's like playing in the NHL without getting paid and without the glory. It's pretty tough sometimes. Like you saw me get knocked out, for instance…"

Recalling the incident, Tidus winced, "Oh, yeah. Man, that really sucked."

"Pretty much every game is like that." Jake emphasized energetically, smirking, "But Sora has the defensemen to save his ass, now."

"Hey, shut up. Lets play," I rushed forward, beating Jake by a mile only to have Tidus catch my shot towards the upper corner of the goal. Blinking a bit in surprise, I commented, "Impressive."

"Thanks," He muttered back, tossing the puck back to me.

Clumsily catching it, I then tossed it to Jake. Effortlessly grabbing it in midair, he let it drop back on the ground, asking, "So what are you and Kairi planning to do this break? I'm going to the mountains for Christmas, apparently. My mom told me yesterday."

"Nothing, really, besides going to grandparents' house on Christmas. Can't really go anywhere with Midnight, anyway." I shrugged. I was fine with staying home all of break; I just wished I saw Kairi more.

Raising an eyebrow, the blonde repeated, "Midnight…?"

"Sora got Kai a kitty cat for their anniversary." Jake answered in a mocking tone, snickering as he finished.

"Sorry I'm thoughtful?" I shot back, quickly causing both of their mouths to shut into frowns. Further defending myself, I explained, "Kairi means the world to me. I'm…actually thinking about proposing soon." I kind of regretted it the moment it passed my lips because I knew what their reactions would be.

Dropping his hockey stick on the ground and his mouth now agape, Jake asked in disbelief, "You serious?" Tidus held the same shocked expression.

"Very." I huffed with a confident nod, only managing to shake my friends up even more.

Letting out a nervous laugh, the brunette eventually replied, "Uh, congrats, I guess…But, really? You're both nineteen. In fact, Kairi only turned nineteen like two weeks ago."

"Yeah, you're still kids, basically. Just wait a couple more years or something, dude." Tidus echoed Jake with his suggestion.

I shook my head, "If I got engaged in the next year, it doesn't necessarily mean I'll be _married_ in the next year." I kind of winced at the word, feeling as it still seemed extremely foreign and far off even though I was committing myself to it with what I was planning to do. I figured it was because of my friends' reactions and continued, "Being engaged all through college would be the same thing as dating all through college and then getting married afterward. But being engaged has a lot more of a serious tone to it, and I am serious. I need her in my life, guys. That's just how I am, I guess; and if you think I'm crazy for it, oh well. I'm not going to change my mind at this point."

"I mean, I'll support you all the way, but I'll still think you're crazy." With a grin, Jake added, "But, what's new?"

Shrugging, Tidus replied sheepishly, "Like you said, it's your life. Do what's best for you."

Sighing and letting out a small laugh, I commented, "Better than nothing, I guess. I know it's not really normal for this day and age, or whatever but really. Me? _Normal_? Psh." Pausing, I tilted my head, "So…playing? Yes, no?"

Letting out a chuckle, the blonde answered honestly, "I don't think I could focus after that."

"Probably not." The brunette agreed, although I wasn't sure if he was agreeing that he wouldn't be able to focus either or that Tidus wouldn't.

Feeling a bit of annoyance, I bit down slightly on my lip and muttered, "Okay." '_So much for getting it off my mind; it's taking over my life_.' I let out a sigh as I skated into Tidus's garage and began taking the skates off my feet.

"So…how soon are you thinking about doing it?" Jake asked in a curious tone as he now loomed over me.

Slipping my shoes back onto my feet, I stood and threw up my hands, "I dunno…" Pointing a finger in his face and then at Tidus, I concluded, "That means keep your mouth shut. No telling Amy, and _especially_ no telling Selphie. Got it?"

The blonde nodded, "Yeah, I got it."

"Sure…" Jake replied less convincingly.

Narrowing my eyes, I retorted, "I mean it."

Rolling his brown eyes at me, he replied, "I _will_."

"Thanks," I sighed, taking a step forward and announcing, "Uh, well I guess I'll start heading home now. See ya."

"See ya."

"Bye."

Feeling a bit frustrated with what had just happened on the walk home, the feelings quickly washed away when I saw that Kairi's car was in my mom's driveway. Quickly making my way up the front porch and swinging the front door open, I called out loudly, "Hey!"

"You're home early." My mom's voice answered from the right, causing me to turn my head and to see that they were both seated in the living room.

Catching Kairi's eye and making her smile, I smiled myself as I stepped into the living room, "Eh, I guess we're all feeling lazy since we're on break." I lied. I never made a single glance to my mom despite the fact that I was talking to her and I paused as I saw Kairi rising from the chair.

"You're not lazy all the time?" She replied in a mocking tone, wrapping her arms around me in a light hug.

Returning the embrace, I answered, "Not for hockey; no."

"Uh-huh." She let go of me and sat on the couch instead of the chair she was in before. I automatically followed behind her and finally turned to face my mom when I sat down.

With an amused laugh, my mom joked, "Oh, so you did notice that I was here?"

"Sorry." I mumbled back.

"It's okay," Stretching out her arms and yawning, she continued, "I'm actually feeling kind of lazy, myself. I think I'll go upstairs and try to catch a quick nap."

Blinking suspiciously, I trailed out, "Okay…" I couldn't decide if she was actually tired or making an excuse to give Kairi and me alone time, just in case. Ignoring it, I turned back to the girl I loved; kissing her cheek and then her lips. "How's life at Selphie's?" I pulled away with an amused smile.

Giggling a bit, she replied, "Strange, as usual." Remembering something, she parted her lips and exclaimed, "Oh! I got a call from Naminè today… Roxas broke up with her because he has feelings for Olette, apparently…"

"…Yeah, Roxas told me a few weeks ago that he was really confused about the whole thing."

Raising an eyebrow, Kairi frowned, "You should have said something to me. She's really upset about this, you know. Her boyfriend and her best friend… She knows Olette feels the same way about him but she won't go near him if Naminè isn't okay with it."

"Like I said, Roxas was really confused," I defended, "He was trying to figure out what exactly he was feeling as well as a way not to hurt anyone. And I quote, "I know Naminè is going to end up crying no matter what I do and that makes me feel like the worst person in the world. And if Naminè cries, then Olette will be pissed at me and I'll feel even worse." If he didn't explain things himself to Naminè, things could have gotten really bad. So I kept it to myself."

"Aww, Roxas." She cooed at first before continuing in her normal voice, "Yeah, Naminè isn't mad at him. She's just really hurt and doesn't know how to feel. But I do know she's definitely lonely. I was thinking about sleeping over at her dorm sometime soon. Olette is really torn up about it too; she's staying at someone else's dorm for a little while to make sure they keep the peace."

Nodding, I answered, "Yeah, I understand." Pausing, I nudged against her, murmuring, "But I already miss not having you there when I go to sleep."

Laughing and gaining a bit of a bit of color in her cheeks, she looked away, "Can't really do much about that, for now." Out of nowhere, Midnight jumped into her lap, purring so loud that it sounded like it was coming from a cat ten times her size. "Hey you," Kairi smiled, running a down Midnight's back.

"And Midnight misses not having you twenty four/seven. Although I do too, kinda, as well." Laughing at myself, I admitted, "Okay, not kinda. I _definitely_ do."

"Well, Midnight may just have to live with it until Christmas is over, but we could always go on another one of our midnight walks." She suggested, still keeping her eyes on the kitten.

Smiling, I replied, "Mmm… It's kinda cold outside, especially at late night. But I guess for you, it's worth it."

Rolling her sapphire eyes, she answered, "Like you have any right to complain about the cold. _I'll_ probably die, but you'll be fine."

Sticking out my tongue, I quickly defended, "Just because I can handle it doesn't mean I _like_ it…"

"Right, right." She smiled, still not looking up from Midnight.

Snaking an arm over her shoulder and pulling her closer to me, I murmured into her ear, "I'll keep you warm, I promise."

"I'll hold you to that." She reached up to wrap her arms around my neck and pulled me down to her. Kissing her, she started to lean backward before we were interrupted by a small meow. Giggling a bit, she glanced down to her lap, where the kitten still was, and apologized, "Sorry, Midnight." Looking back to me, she smiled softly and reminded me, "We've got tonight, without any distractions."

Lightly resting my head on her shoulder, I replied, "Sounds good."

"So… We're going to your grandparents' house on Thursday and staying the night there, right?" She changed the subject back to something more suitable for my mom to walk in on.

Sighing, I answered, "Yeah, I guess. Sure you want to?"

Giggling and gently shrugging my head off of her shoulder, she replied with an intent stare, "_Yes_. Why do you keep askin me that?"

"I just don't see how you want to go. I wouldn't if I were you." I answered honestly, a wide grin stretched across my face.

"Too bad; you're you and I'm me." She smiled back.

At this, I leaned downward to give her a peck on the lips, "I know."

Leaving her eyes closed for a moment and still smiling as I pulled away, she opened her eyes and signed once she caught sight of the clock, "I guess I should head back to Selphie's."

"Already?" I gave an over dramatic pout.

Giggling, she mumbled, "Yeah…" Lifting Midnight off her lap and placing her gently back down on the couch, she stood up and reached back down to pet her, "Bye, Midnight." Standing up straight, she turned to me and held out her arms, smiling again, "Bye, Sora."

Stepping closer to let her latch her arms around me as I put my own on her, I kissed her gently and between breaths murmured, "See you tonight,"

"Mhm," She murmured back as she pulled away, I watching her every move as she quietly slid out the door.

Letting out a sigh due to the fact tonight seemed too far away, I called out loudly to reach upstairs, "She left, Mom." Quickly exiting her room, I saw her at the top of the stairs and added, "Nothing exciting happened." '_Not yet, anyway. But she doesn't need to know about that._' I thought smugly to myself.

Smiling softly, she continued down the stairs and placed a hand on my should as she reached me, reminding, "That's fine. Don't rush yourself."

"Right." I nodded back.

The whole proposing thing seemed pretty simplistic at first but I felt like the more and more I delayed it, the more anxious I got. But I had to do it _right_, so it couldn't just be when I was comfortable with it. It was a 'her' thing as much as it was a 'me' thing, and I figured that it would seem obvious when it was a good time for the both of us. But it was becoming pretty apparent that it wasn't going to work out quite so easily and maybe I needed to do some rethinking. For the moment, though, I was just going to enjoy my night with Kairi instead of worrying about that other stuff. Of course, I'd bring the ring along in case my original plan worked out. But otherwise, I wasn't going to think about it.

I didn't really bother trying to be quiet when I went downstairs; I didn't live here anymore so there wasn't really much that Mom could do. Stepping out onto my back porch, I quickly caught sight of Kairi sitting in my gazebo; her crimson hair easily visible in the dark.

Quietly walking across the yard, I stopped by the foot of the gazebo as she mumbled, "The last time we were here…didn't turn out so well."

Grinding my teeth together at the reminder of Ryou, I avoided the subject, taking a step into the gazebo, "What last time?"

Squinting her eyes at me in confusion, I held out my hands for her to take and pulled her up. Before she could question my actions, I leaned into her and nudged her backward towards the support beam; just like last time. We had already stopped kissing due to our own accord before Ryou made his entrance, but that still didn't help my lingering feeling that he ruined it, and I was going to make it right. This was going to be my first step of getting rid of Kairi's fear of Ryou. Tonight was going to be completely different and hopefully would replace her older memories; at least slightly, if anything.

Kissing her roughly, I took it much more slower than I had when I was fifteen. I was acting blindly, desperately trying to get her to understand what I was feeling. This was so much more natural and Kairi wasn't the slightest bit hesitant. Her hands previously entangled in my hair were now at my waist and pulling me forward. Refraining from pushing myself against her, I began a trail of kisses down to the necklace of her shirt.

"Kairi," I breathed out against her neck in between kisses, "I love you so much."

In the back of my head, I knew it sounded like I was trying to pressure her into having sex, but I really wasn't. It just felt like it needed to be said. She didn't seem to take it negatively; putting a hand against my cheek and making me open my eyes to look up at her, she smiling sweetly, "I love you, too."

Smiling back, I remembered the temperature outside and asked worriedly, "You're not cold, are you? We don't have to--" She shook her head, pulling mine back towards hers and smiling into the kiss.

Merely making out for a few more minutes, I couldn't fight the urge to press myself against her anymore. Pressing her back farther into the support beam, she let out a quiet moan into my mouth and her arms fell back down at her sides. Feeling her arch against me and hearing her sigh my name, I blinked my eyes open to make sure she wasn't trying to get me to stop. Seeing Kairi was alright, I also saw white crystals falling behind her.

Leaving a trail of kisses across her cheek, I whispered into her ear, "Hey, Kai. It's snowing."

"That's nice…" She muttered and turned my face back to hers, kissing me and completely ignoring what I just said.

Chuckling, I pulled away and distanced myself from her, holding her wrists and stating, "That means I should take you home before we both get sick form being outside so long in the cold."

Her arms dropping loosely at her sides, she sighed, "I guess you're right."

Kissing her forehead, I laughed, "Good girl."

Rolling her eyes and slipping her hands out of my grasp, she took a few steps down the stairs of the gazebo. Following after her and draping an arm over her shoulder, I walked her back to Selphie's in a comfortable silence.

Stopping in front of the house, she trailed out, "Well, see you in a few hours…"

"Hm?" I raised an eyebrow in confusion.

"I'm staying with you tomorrow to make it easier to go to your grandparents' house on Christmas Eve. Hasn't your mom said anything?" She blinked in disbelief.

"She never tells me anything anymore." I chuckled, tilting my head down to hers. Lingering close to her lips, I whispered, "See you then.

Her lip first twitching, she answered quietly, "Okay."

Smirking, I turned and started on my way, calling back, "Goodnight!"

"Night." She called back softly before retreating into the house.

'_I'm _pretty _sure that went well_…' I thought smugly to myself, stuffing my hands into my pockets and sticking my tongue out to catch a few snowflakes.

Sure, I wasn't really a kid anymore but I was still allowed to enjoy myself, right? Kairi always brought me back to Earth, anyway, whenever I was a little to high up in the clouds. Eying my deck as I spotted it in the distance, I told myself, _'Okay. I'm going to be quiet coming back in and not let Kairi's sexiness make me forget all my common sense; unless I'm actually _with _her…_' Slowly putting my hand over the doorknob, I shook off my off topic thoughts and finished, '_So I don't get caught this time. Even though it doesn't really matter, Mom will still probably be pissed at me._'

Opening the door as slowly as possible to avoid creaking, I carefully shut it again and locked it before sneaking up the stairs. Slowly shutting my bedroom door behind me, I let out a sigh and slipped into bed. Wondering where Midnight was but too lazy to get up and look for her, I fell asleep only to wake up with Kairi at the foot of my bed, with said cat faithfully curled up in her lap.

"Hey," I nudged Kairi with my foot, causing her to flinch slightly.

Turning around with a sheepish smile, she greeted, "Hi, sleepy head."

Sitting up and stretching out my arms, I questioned in a yawn, "What are you doing here already?"

"It's one in the afternoon, tomorrow is Christmas Eve, and I promised I'd go with you which you seem to find strange even though I'm really looking forward to it--"

Mouth dropping open, I burst out, "Whoa, hold on. Looking _forward_ to it? I thought you were just being nice."

Giggling a bit at my expression, she looked down at the bed shyly and began, "No, silly… I've never really big holiday things. It always just me, Selphie, and her mom. That's mostly the reason why I was so nervous at Thanksgiving because I didn't really know what to expect. Besides hearing stories about you, it just feels so much more like a holiday being surrounded by a family; something more than just the commercialized parts of it. I just…really liked it."

"Aw, Kairi…" I trailed out as I flung the blankets off of me and moved towards her. Tightly wrapping my arms around her, I admitted, "I dunno what to say other than they love having you there. They've been trying to get me to drag you down there for a while but I was embarrassed, I guess. Like, you see how my cousins get to me. I love my family, I really do. But God, they seem pretty dysfunctional sometimes." I let out a laugh and she echoed it.

'_They already consider her part of the family; they have long before they even met her. But I guess she was so nervous last time that she didn't really let it sink in, so I need to make it clear. So I can…_' Blinking my eyes and letting out a small gasp without thinking about the consequences, I grinned from head to toe, '_I can propose to her in front of everyone else and officially make her part of the family! Thank you, God; I finally have the perfect plan._'

"What's wrong?" Kairi tugged away from me, giving me a worried stare upon my hearing my gasp.

"Nothing!" I smiled brightly, pulling her back to me and into a kiss to distract her while I began to plan what I could possible say that would be good enough to be right for this amazing girl.


	11. Because You Live

**It's been a year since I updated last, and I'm sorry.**

**Long story short: my house burnt down about a week before school started. If you want my story/details, whatever, PM me. I just really want to get this story back on track.**

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own KH or the song "Because You Live" by Jesse McCartney.**

XOXO

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Ten

Because You Live

_Because you live and breathe_

_Because you make me believe in myself_

_When nobody else can help._

_Because you live, girl, _

_my world has twice as many stars in the sky._

XOXO

"You know, it's really nice to sleep in your old bed." Kairi absentmindedly ran her fingers across my arm, which was draped over the front of her, as she spoke, "It kinda feels like I'm doing something rebellious for once, since I always slept on the couch when I stayed here in high school."

"So me sneaking into your room all the time," I began with a chuckle, leaning forward and kissing her neck, "Wasn't rebellious enough for you?"

Giggling as my lips tickled her skin, she replied, "It's not like I ever had to do anything; just let you into bed with me."

Pausing, I questioned, "What about sneaking out at night, then?"

"I guess I did do that a few times…" She tapped a finger against her lips in thought and I reconnected my lips to her lower neck. Since she remained quiet, I decided to leave a trail of kisses down her chest until she out a small squeak.

Though she made no attempt to stop me, she whined, "Sora, your mom will hear us…"

I moved my lips from her chest to her ear, whispering, "I thought you were liking being rebellious?"

"Not _that_ rebellious." I saw fear flash through her eyes as she looked at me.

"I wasn't thinking like that, Kai," I kissed her forehead and lips, smiling as I lightly grabbed her hips, "Besides, you're the one on top of me. You're in control."

Smiling back, she answered, "Not like you couldn't easily flip me over."

"Only if you want me to." I promised her with a wink, at which she flushed.

Placing her hands over mine and closing her eyes, she replied, "Mm, no thanks. I'm comfortable right here."

My lips still curved into a smile, I kissed her cheek, "Fine with me." I closed my eyes, letting the closeness of her body and the warmth of it take over me and wondering how I ever went to sleep without her.

In this room, I spent so many nights laying awake thinking about her; hating myself for not making a movie, or saying something stupid, or worrying if she was going to be okay. Now that she was always curled against me at night, I had to be the happiest person alive. I still had worries, but nothing had been bad enough to ever keep me up at night when Kairi was beside me.

So normally I would be happy that Kairi was also sleeping in the same room as me at my Grandparent's house but with the engagement ring, I was paranoid that she was going to see it before the right moment. It was amazing that I had even managed to keep it hidden this long.

"We're sleeping together at my grandparents' house too. You know that, right?" I brought the subject up for entertainment purposes.

"Right. Why, are you going to tell me we have to at least sound like we're doing something so Axel won't forever judge you as a loser?" Kairi's smirk showed easily through the darkness, her teeth pearly white.

I furrowed my brow, "God, no. Axel would probably get off from that, which I don't want to think about. Now that I think about it, guess I should check for cameras in the room too…" I cringed, "Why would you ever bring him up in this conversation? You ruined it."

"Sorry, just teasing you." She laughed, adding in a more quiet tone, "Besides, you know I would feel too awkward knowing that your family is all down the hall."

Kissing her cheek, I sighed, "I know. But don't get me wrong. I would prefer to avoid awkward conversations with my family as much as possible, so only messing around in our apartment is okay with me."

Pausing for a moment, Kairi began to sit up and I let my hands slide away from her. Staring up at her in confusion, I watched her turn around and straddle me as she said, "Him, in that case, then maybe I will."

"Hey, not cool." I gave a slight frown. Sitting up, I locked my lips with hers and began easing her back down. Too distracted by me kissing her and returning the favor, she didn't really mind when I nudged her back into her spot on the bed and me on top of her instead of the other way around.

Once I had her where I wanted her, I broke away and muttered, "If this is seriously the moment in life where you're comfortable with sex, you have the worst timing ever."

I lifted myself off of her and as soon as my head was back on my pillow, she leaned over and laid her head on my chest, "I was just messing with you." Closing her eyes, she continued, "I was getting ready to get off you when you started kissing me."

Wrapping an arm around I replied sarcastically, "Sure you were."

"I was…" She shined and looked up at me with a pout, adding, "I promise."

Letting out a laugh, I gave her a quick peck and said, "We should go to sleep. Night, Kai."

"Night," She answered back with a nudge of her head against my chest, as she was still using it as a pillow.

Early the next morning, my mom woke up both by turning on the extremely bright light on my ceiling fan. Groaning and pulling the covers over my head, I asked, "What time is it…? Is it even daylight yet?"

"No, but you still need to get up. It's 6:30." I heard her voice answer from the doorway.

Feeling Kairi get up due to my arm sliding off of her as she went, I heard her tell my mom, "I'll get him up, don't worry." After I heard my mom laugh and walk downstairs, Kairi patted my shoulder through the comforter and whispered, "You can sleep for a little bit longer."

"You're an angel." I answered in a muffled tone. She giggled and I heard her close the bedroom door as she made her way down the hall to the bathroom. Before I knew it, she was back and poking me, telling me I needed to get up.

"You can sleep in the car, you know." She pointed out as she tried to pull the covers away, but I held them down with all my strength.

"That's uncomfortable, though." I whined.

Sighing and most likely rolling her eyes, she suggested, "Then go back to sleep when we get there."

"But by then, I've already been up too long so I can't go back to sleep." I argued back, my eyes still shut.

"_Sora_. Get up, please."

Throwing the covers away and slipping out of bed, I walked around to the other side of it and leaned down to kiss her forehead, "Morning!"

"Morning…" She mumbled back, annoyed by my persistence to not get up.

"Sorry, love." I ran a hand through her hair and against her cheek before picking up the clothes I had laid out the night before, at Kairi's suggestion, and made my way to the bathroom.

Taking only a few minutes, I returned to my room to find that Kairi, as well as her stuff, was already downstairs. Spotting my jacket draped over the computer chair, I quickly reached into the pocket for the most important item I was taking with me. Feeling the soft velvet box between my fingers, I smiled to myself and put the jacket on.

Quickly throwing my backpack of clothes over my shoulder, I rushed downstairs as I figured if I took my time my mom and Kairi would both get extremely annoyed with me. The front door was already open when I got downstairs, and I saw Kairi putting her things into the trunk of my mom's car through the storm door.

Walking outside and coming up behind her, I tossed my bag in the truck and inquired, "You reminded Selphie about checking Midnight's food and water, right?"

She nodded, "Was done way before you were awake."

Still behind her, I wrapped my arms around her waist, mumbling, "Okay. Well, still looking forward to this?"

"Of course I am." She closed her eyes and leaned back against me, her body molding against mine.

"Hmm. You seem tired too." I closed my eyes as well, lightly resting my head on her shoulder.

I felt her shoulders slump and rise and she inhaled, "Yeah, I am. I had to get up though, so I'll get over it."

"You can sleep in the car, like you said to me." I reminded her.

Nodding, she yawned and replied, "I'll try, but it probably won't work."

"You have a good hour to sleep and even if you can't, you can always lay down and rest after we get there." Both of us turned our heads toward my mom, who was standing on the front porch with her keys out and seemingly ready to go.

Gently removing herself from me, Kairi stepped forward and started sheepishly, "I don't want to seem rude—"

"Oh, you won't be upsetting any one, Hun. Besides, we won't be doing anything until later in the evening." Mom attempted to soothe Kairi's worries, walking over to hear and lightly placing a hand on the girl's shoulder.

Giving a forced smile, Kairi replied, "Okay. Well, I'll see how I feel when we get there, and if I'm still tired then I'll take a nap." But I knew she said that to satisfy my mom and in reality, Kairi wouldn't take a nap when we got there; even if she was extremely tired.

My mom smiled and turned to the car, exclaiming, "Well, let's get going!"

Giving each other light smiles, Kairi and I went to our separate sides to get into the backseat. Once on the road, I easily drifted off and after a few times of waking up in short bursts I found that Kairi had eventually nodded off as well, against my shoulder.

Of course, she woke up before me and was poking me once we had arrived to our destination. "Wake up, we're here!" She jabbed her finger into my shoulder.

Yawning and turning to lean on the window, I muttered, "Wake me up when it's time to leave."

"Okay, but it might get a lonely out here in the car." I heard her unbuckle her seatbelt.

Lifting my head, I said seriously, "You wouldn't leave me."

Smiling in amusement, she replied, "Normally, no. But in this case, yes."

Sighing, I removed my seatbelt and opened the door, "I guess you leave me no choice."

"Good boy." Kairi cooed as she exited from the other side.

Glancing around at all the cars in the front yard, I commented, "Guess we're the last ones here."

"Mhm," My mom answered, standing in front of her car.

"We should have slept in more if we were already going to be the last ones here." I yawned again, "I'm sure you'll spend half the night laughing with Aunt Zanisha and not get any sleep. That is who you're sharing a room with, right?"

"Right. But no, I'm already worried that we're holding things up. We should probably go put up our things."

Lifting up the trunk, I began shuffling through bags to pull out my own, "Got it."

After putting my backpack on my shoulders, I began to pull out Kairi's suitcase to which she quickly retaliated, "Oh, no you don't." She placed her hand over mine, which was grasping the handle of her bag, "Step aside."

"Why?" I pouted, which she ignored and gently shoved me out of the way.

"Because I can do it myself and you have your own stuff to worry about." She answered as she put her suitcase down on the cement.

"All I have is this." I pointed to my backpack, mentally adding, '_And the ring in my pocket, but you don't need to know that yet._'

Kairi simply put a finger on her lips, shushing me as she followed my mom towards the front door. She was obviously trying very hard to pretend she was struggling with it.

The door lightly swung open before we even reached it, my grandmother standing in the doorframe.

"Hi," we were all greeted at once, taking our turns in the customary family hugs and what not. "If you all want to go unpack your things and get settled, dinner will be ready in a few hours." My grandma nodded her head towards the staircase.

"Kay, thanks." I smiled, picking up Kairi's suitcase, as she watched in a disbelieving star, and headed upstairs.

"Hey, wait!" I heard her call after me, followed by a series of rushed footsteps.

My mom and my grandmother laughed at her antics, my grandmother commenting, "They're certainly cute."I grinned, looking back at Kairi who gained a little bit of color on her cheeks from that comment.

"You didn't have to do that." She said sheepishly.

"I told you, I wanted to."

"Hello there, love birds." I looked up to see Axel at the stop of the staircase and grinded my teeth together.

While I said nothing and shoved past him, Kairi chirped cheerfully, "Hey,"

"Such a shame that such a nice girl like you is with such a bitter person like Sky, here." Axel sighed dramatically.

Whirling around, I grumbled, "Only bitter around _you_."

Crossing his arms, Axel remarked, "If you say so. Anyway, I guess I'm supposed to show you your room."

"Would be nice." I mumbled back.

Walking down to the third door on the right, he extended his arms as if he were a game show host, "Here's your luxurious suite. If you desire room service, I suggest forgetting about it."

Kairi giggled and I rolled my eyes, moving toward the room and immediately dropping the bags once I reached it. "Thank you, Axel." Kairi gave him a smile as she passed, causing him to smirk in satisfaction.

Turning away to ignore him, I watched Kairi began to unpack her suitcase and realized I should do the same. As I took a step in her direction, I heard Axel call me from the door, "Hey, Sky, come here."

Sighing, I went out into the hallway and asked in a tired tone, "_What_?"

"Early Christmas present, since you two are rooming together." He shoved a box in my hands and began walking towards the stairs.

Looking down and seeing a box of condoms, I groaned, "Really, Axel?"

"You're welcome!" He replied, already half way down the stairs.

Glaring, I went back into the room and shoved the box in the front of my backpack so that Kairi wouldn't see them.

"What did he do?" Kairi turned to me with concerned eyes.

"Nothing. He's just stupid." I growled, unzipping the main part of my bag and yanking clothes out from it.

With a sigh, Kairi stated, "Just ignore him, Sora. He can only get to you if you let him."

"Guess you're right." I stood, taking a step closer to Kairi and locking lips with her.

"Aren't…I…always?" She replied in-between kisses.

Pulling away from her, I replied, "Psh."

Rolling her eyes, the redhead retaliated, "Fine. Go back to unpacking your clothes, then."

"I will." I answered with a smirk, returning to my bag and ignoring her as she supposedly wished.

Of course, within five minutes she was pouting and whining, "Come on, you know I didn't mean it."

"Did I?"

"I think you did."

Mockingly tapping a finger against my lips in thought, I replied, "Hmm…maybe…"

Shaking her head and getting up, Kairi sighed, "Whatever; you're mean."

Watching her make her way for the door, I questioned, "Wait. Where are you going?"

"For a walk." She replied simply, not stopping.

"Can I come with you?" I jumped up and rushed to her side.

She shrugged, "I suppose."

Grinning, I slipped my hand into hers, "Good."

All of my family members were in the living room so it was fairly easy to go unnoticed as we ventured out the back door and into the backyard. "This is nice," Kairi commented, taking in the forest around her, "But I like your backyard better. Although, yours could be even better if it had a swing like this one."

"You and your swings." I smiled, watching her take a seat and push herself off, "But yeah, I guess I'm pretty lucky to have a pond and a gazebo in my backyard."

"Incredibly lucky." She echoed, swinging back and forth.

Thinking of the ring in my pocket, I suggested, "When we start looking for a real house, you can pick the one with the perfect backyard and stuff."

Closing her eyes in thought as she continued to swing, she murmured, "Hmm." She opened her eyes again, a new idea clear upon her face, "I want a nice garden too."

"We would have to do that ourselves, you know." I reminded her, smiling as I gently pushed her, "No place is going to be _perfect_; we have to fix it up a little."

"I know that." She gave a mocked glare and kicked harder so that I would miss when I reached out to push her.

Folding my arms behind my head and leaning against the tree, I replied, "Just saying."

"Mhm," She hummed, content to keep swinging for possibly forever. Kairi had always known how to appreciate the little things in life. I loved her for that, but it also kind of made me jealous at the same time. I over thought _everything_ and worried over the smallest things. I may have been easy to amuse, but I was certainly easy to distress as well.

Shaking myself out of my thoughts, I joked, "Aren't you ever going to share?"

"Oh," Kairi skidded to a halt, looking up with a sheepish expression, "Sorry."

I shook my head, "I was kidding. I have fun just watching and pushing you."

"Too bad, cuz I feel guilty now." She stood and laid her head on my shoulder, "So what now?"

"I'm sure dinner will be done soon." I shrugged, anxiousness growing in the pit of my stomach. The closer dinner was, the closer I was to proposing. My heart was beating so fast at the thought of it that it hurt and I wished so much that I had already proposed the night after we had gotten Midnight. I was nervous _then_, but it was spur of the moment so the pressure wasn't so built up like it was now.

"You okay?" Kairi's concerned voice snapped me back to reality.

Looking down at her, she was staring at me intently, "Oh, sorry. I zoned out." I replied sheepishly, scratching the back of my head.

Still frowning, she inquired, "What were you thinking about? You looked upset."

"No, no," I laughed nervously, "I dunno what I was thinking about, really. Was just kind of staring out in to space. Don't worry about it." I bent down to kiss her forehead.

"If you say so." She muttered.

"Really." I reinforced, kissing her again but this time on the lips to distract her.

Pulling back slightly, she forfeited, "Okay. You win. I won't worry about it."

Grinning, I answered, "Good."

It was silent for a moment before I heard my mom call from the porch, "Dinner's ready, you two!"

With a quiet gulp, I took Kairi's hand and we walked into the house together. The word "Wow" escaped her lips as soon as we stepped into the dining room. Dinner was the same as it was every year for me, but nonetheless, Kairi was impressed.

"Heh," I smiled nervously, glad that she was happy but I was too wrapped up in my anxiousness to say much else.

After pulling out a chair for Kairi and taking a seat myself, I locked eyes with mom who instantly saw through my not-so-convincing mask of calmness. Shifting her eyes to Kairi for a second, she looked back at me and raised her eyebrows in question. Letting out a shallow breath of air, I gave a small nod and watched a giant smile take over my mom's face. Lucky for her, Kairi was talking to Demyx or else she would have caught on to our wordless conversation.

A few more minutes passed by before everyone made their way to the table; I giving occasional one word answers to any questions that came in my direction. After saying grace, I dug into the buffet of food as an excuse to not talk much, even though I hardly had an appetite at the moment.

Kairi picked at most of the foods on the table until she found things she liked and passed anything she didn't to me. At least I had an excuse if I still had a mountain on my plate when everyone else was done, since she was constantly shoveling food onto it.

'_How does anyone live through this_?' I asked myself, chewing on my lip as dinner dragged on and yet was also slipping away too fast at the same time.

'_Especially if they say no._' I looked to her and felt a pang of fear run through my body. I told myself I'd be okay if she said no because we were too young, but now that I had all this anticipation built up I wasn't quite sure if I still felt the same way.

And what if she just flat out said _no_? I wasn't prepared for that. I didn't know if I'd ever be able to function again if _that_ happened.

And all too soon, the table was being cleared of all the food and my family was getting up one by one from the table. Without saying a word, I stood up and held out a hand for Kairi. She took it and I gently pulled her towards the den.

I swallowed. Hard.

Kairi furrowed her eyebrows, "Sora…? You okay?"

"Uh, yeah." I responded very quickly and nervously. Breathing in, I began, "You know how much everyone here appreciates you coming, right? And that you're already considered a part of the family?"

Twirling the ends of her hair on her finger, she replied sheepishly, "Yeah, I guess I do. Why?"

Heart beating out of my chest, I reached a hand into my pocket and answered, "I was hoping I could make you officially part of the family." I saw her glance at the hand in my pocket and watched as her eyes and lips widen as I lowered myself to one knee.

Interrupting the sort of daze I was in was the loud spitting noise and an exclamation from Axel, "Holy shit, is he _proposing_!?"

Wincing a bit, I turned to the dinner table and said, "If you'd let me get to that part, Axel…" Kairi let out a small laugh, causing me to turn back to her and lock eyes. "I have such bad luck, but I'm not letting him ruin this." I shook my head with a low chuckle before switching myself back into serious mode. "Kairi Yoshida," I pulled the box out of my pocket and clumsily flipped it open, "Will you marry me?"

Her eyes were watered over, but she had a wide smile on her face, so I figured that was a good sign. But the momentary silence was making me nervous.

She opened her mouth a few times, but always ended up hiding her face in her hands or having a small fit of giggles. Eventually, she gave a nod, and that was good enough for me. And finally, the weight of the whole world seemed to lift off of my shoulders. Slipping the ring onto her finger, I then jumped up to kiss her.

As soon as I stood up, however, she beat me to the punch; kissing me first but barely giving me enough time to react before she pulled away and laid her head on my shoulder. Feeling tears on my shirt, she whispered in sniffles, "I love you."

I kissed her atop the head, on her forehead, her cheek, and finally her lips, echoing, "I love you too."


	12. You Got Me

**I have no excuse for taking this long to update. But I've gotten back into writing a lot ever since Dream Drop Distance came out so hopefully I can finally finish this story off soon. This chapter kind of came out differently then I originally planned and it was already 10 pages long so I guess Fractured Love is gonna end up being 1 chapter longer than it was originally supposed to be. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own KH, nor the song "You Got Me" by Colbie Caillat for which this chapter is named and also I don't own Victorious. I throw that in there because Tori is lightly based off of Tori from Victorious. **

XOXO

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Eleven

You Got Me

_Oh, I just can't get enough.  
How much do I need to fill me up?  
It feels so good, it must be love.  
It's everything that I've been dreaming of.  
I give up, I give in.  
I let go, let's begin.  
'Cause no matter what I do,  
my heart is filled with you._

XOXO

"Would you stop looking at that ring so much?" I laughed nervously, adding, "You're distracting me while I'm trying to drive."

"I can't help it." She answered in an apologetic tone, "Just…everything it symbolizes. And the fact it was the ring your dad gave to your mom… it means so much to me."

I smiled, keeping my eyes on the road, "Well, that was the plan. So… glad it worked out."

"Definitely." She answered enthusiastically. Pausing for a moment, she then asked, "Do you think it'll be weird when we go to all our classes and such?"

"Not really," I shrugged, "I'm sure Olette and Naminè will spaz out and scream when they see you in person and other girls in your classes will join in randomly cuz, I dunno, it just seems like something that would happen according to all those chick flicks you and Selphie made me watch throughout my whole life. And I guess they might do that for the first couple of days but then everything will go back to normal. And Jake and Tidus kind of already told me before that I was crazy, but that they would support me. Plus it's not really as obvious for me; I don't have a ring, for now."

"That's true…" She acknowledged, then questioning, "But you really don't think anyone will think it's weird since we're kind of young?"'

I felt my stomach drop a little and gripped the steering wheel tighter, "…Do you?"

"No… but you know the rest of the world doesn't necessarily share my opinion."

I let a quiet sigh of relief and replied, "Well, in the end it just matters what _you_ think. You can tell everyone else to go screw themselves. Although, I know you won't because you're too nice; but you get the point."

She laughed, "Yeah."

After a silent pause, I put my full attention back on the road and commented, "Almost there, finally."

"Mhm," She yawned, "With the all the excitement of the past couple of days, I feel like I'm just going to collapse on the bed and take a long nap."

"Sounds good to me too." I agreed, making a sharp turn into the apartment entrance and sped towards our building so I could get out of the car sooner. After driving all day, I was definitely ready to get out and stretch my legs and then relax and do nothing for the rest of the day. Pulling into the parking spot, I quickly threw open the door and said, "You get Midnight from the back & I'll get all the bags."

"Okay." I barely heard her as I stepped around my car to the trunk and mashing down the button on the remote for it to pop open. As I pulled out my black luggage and her purple one, I heard her make her way beside me as she said, "I wish I could have her life. Must be great to not have to go to school and just have people wait on you all the time."

Closing the trunk, I laughed and reached down to pet Midnight's head, who blinked her eyes open at me for a second before closing them again, "I know. Pets definitely have it made."

We didn't say anything to each other as we grabbed all of our stuff and headed up to our apartment, just gave each other a few smiles here and there. As I twisted the key around in the keyhole, Kairi repeated eagerly, "Ah, I can't wait to go collapse onto the bed… Hurry up!"

Laughing, I twisted the door knob, "Okay, okay!"

Pushing open the door, I immediately saw Jake standing in the doorway as he shouted, "SURPRISE!"

Kairi let out a short scream and I flinched before smiling and asking, "What are you doing here?" Squinting, I added, "And how the hell did you get in our apartment?"

Jake scoffed, "Please. You put your spare key in the most overused place ever…" He pointed down at my feet which were on top of the doormat. Slightly pushing me out of the way, he walked toward Kairi and said, "Let's see the rock Sora picked out for you."

"Uh… Actually, it's what my Dad picked out for my Mom." I corrected.

He paused and let out, "Oh, wow…" Kairi held out her hand for him and he stared at it for a few seconds before looking back at me with a shake of his head, "You make the rest of us look bad, Mr. Romantic."

"Sorry, I guess…" I smiled and scratched the back of my head.

With a laugh, Jake changed the subject, "You need any help bringing stuff inside?"

"If you wanna grab those suitcases, that's fine with me." I walked in past him, Kairi trailing behind me with Midnight and put her down on the floor as soon as Jake had closed the door.

"How was it being back home for you? I liked getting free meals and it was nice to be around my parents for a bit, but it definitely sucks having to do the whole 'household rules' thing." Jake took a seat at one of the stools in front of the kitchen bar.

"Seemed like nothing changed." Kairi answered, "At least for me. But we didn't really see Selphie as much as I hoped."

"…I couldn't tell you because I was too focused on other things; like hiding that ring from her." I pointed at her and she let out a small giggle. Smiling a bit, I said, "No, really. That was like the most stressful thing ever, I'm glad it's over with and that it ended well."

"Another reason to add to my long list of why I don't want to get engaged or married for a long time." Jake laughed, "I still think you're crazy. But I'm still happy for both of you."

Frowning a bit, Kairi replied, "Yeah, I think that's generally going to be the response we get from everyone…"

Realizing he upset her, Jake jumped up and said, "Aw, Kairi. You know I really am happy for you guys… I'm just saying that I, personally, wouldn't do it. But you and Sora are different. Everyone is. And I've known that this was going to happen ever since you two got together in sophomore year. Maybe not so soon, but still." He trailed off for a moment before adding, "So… anyone who says it's wrong doesn't really know you."

"Or they're like Jake and don't know how to word their sentences correctly and end up offending people without meaning to." I added with a smile.

He laughed, "Exactly. Sorry, Kai."

"It's okay. Thanks." She smiled.

"Ugh." I groaned, "You know I hate when you say 'Kai'. That's _my_ nickname for her." I wrapped my arms around her shoulders defensively.

The curly haired brunette rolled his eyes, "You don't have it trademarked or anything. I can call her Kai if I want to."

"Maybe I should." I replied in a thoughtful tone.

Slipping out of my grasp as she stood up, Kairi announced, "Well, you two can keep arguing. I'm going to go take a nap."

"Okay." I replied softly and watched her as she went into the bedroom, closing the door behind her.

"So how was it?" Jake asked, diverting my attention back towards him.

"What?"

"Proposing."

"Oh," I let out a breath and laughed nervously, "The most nerve wracking thing ever. You practically feel like you're just going to fall over and die from waiting for the exact moment. And then there's the suspense for the response, which is even worse."

"Ah." He responded, seemingly uninterested. Sitting up straighter, he stared at me directly, "You're not like…actually doing the marriage part soon, are you?"

I shrugged, "I don't know… We haven't really talked about it yet." Pausing, I realized out loud, "We haven't really talked about anything."

He let out what seemed to be a sigh of relief and said, "Well, that's good. I mean, it's your first year of college, dude. You got enough changes going on in your life so it's probably best if you wait it out. Plus, you make all the rest of us on the team look bad." He elbowed my side.

I gave a slight smile, "Sorry." Looking to the bedroom door, I added, "I know you're right about the changes and stuff but I don't know, I guess in the end the decision is up to her. Weddings…" My mind stopped at the word.

"Yeah, wed-ding." He dragged out the word as if he were explaining it to a toddler, "Obviously it hasn't really sunk into your brain yet that that's what an engagement leads to."

"It has!" I frowned, "I mean, I know it leads to marriage but I guess I didn't really think about the whole way it happens. I mean, girls do most of the planning for it anyway… that's what I was trying to say before I went brain dead a minute ago."

Jake put a hand to his forehead, "Man, Sora, it's admirable how much you follow your heart but it seems like you don't really think things through, sometimes."

"I swear this is what I want." I reassured him, "I know it seems like the idea popped into my head so suddenly, but come on. How long did I want to be with her before we actually started dating? I feel like it's always been a constant battle of trying to keep the world from breaking us apart and I just want _us_ to win and not have to fight anymore."

Jake gave an apologetic smile, "I know how hard it's been for both of you. I'm just, you know, making sure that you know what you're doing; you can be a little air-headed sometimes. But in no way have I ever doubted your feelings for Kairi or the fact that you wanted to take it to the next level. I'm just looking out for you and making sure if now's the right time for that. But either way, I'm not in your relationship; it's up to you and her."

I smiled, "Thanks."

Standing up, he announced, "Well, guess I'll leave you guys alone now to do whatever newly engaged couples do."

As he walked towards the door, I stood up and called out, "See ya." He waved a hand over his shoulder as he walked out the door, closing it behind him.

Walking towards the bedroom and opening the door as quietly as possible, I whispered into the room, "You still awake?"

"Mhm…" She replied quietly.

Sliding into bed and draping an arm over her, I asked, "You can't sleep or were you just waiting for me to come join you?"

She giggled, "I guess both." Sinking into the covers and hiding a portion of her face, she commented quietly, "It's good to know you thought everything through and this wasn't a spur of the moment decision or anything."

Feeling slightly embarrassed, I replied, "Y-yeah. I mean, if you don't believe me, ask my Mom. I talked to her forever about it. She tried to talk me out of it at first, sort of." I laughed, "But she eventually understood." Propping myself up on one elbow, I bent over her face and said, "I love you, Kairi."

Lifting up her head to meet my lips, she gave a quick kiss before sinking back down, "I love you too."

XXX

Before I knew it, it was already time to start school again. "I just realized, weren't you stressing out about people wondering about the ring? That's not really gonna be a problem since we have classes with new people, right? And, I mean, you've pretty much told everyone that's a good friend…" I asked while pulling my shirt over my head.

"I'm sure I'll still get asked…" She replied from the other room. Walking out of the bedroom, I saw her hunched over her backpack, making sure she had everything in order.

"I'm glad one of us is organized." I laughed, "I think I don't even know where my backpack is."

"Check the closet." She answered, not even looking up.

Walking back into the bedroom, I opened the door to see it sitting on the floor in the corner and announced, "Yep! You were right."

"I know." She walked into the room and watched me as I put the backpack on the bed, dumping out all of its old content from last semester, "I'm the one who put it there… what are you doing?"

"Well, I don't need any of this anymore. At least not for today, so I'm leaving it here for now." I replied nonchalantly.

"Sora." She gave me a stern look, "You should have taken care of all this stuff last night… Remember? I asked you if you had everything all together and you said yes."

"I mean, I knew it was only gonna take a couple of minutes to put everything together…" I frowned, "I'm sorry. I promise I'll clean it up when we get back."

Giving an annoyed look between me and the mess, she sighed, "Okay… I _guess._ Anyway, I've got to get going, so see you when you get home. Good luck with your first day."

"Same to you." I stepped around the corner of the bed to kiss her before adding, "And don't worry about what people think. What matters is how you feel about it."

She smiled and nodded, "I know you're right. I'm just nervous because I've never really liked being the center of attention for anything. I'll try my best to ignore any negativity and only take in the positive."

"Good." I smiled, "See you later, then."

"Bye." Kairi gave a small wave before heading out the door.

Quickly throwing my new things into my backpack, I headed out the door as well. The first day of class in college was usually even more of a joke then they were in high school; generally we just went over the syllabus and then we were free to go. Of course, that wasn't always the case, but it was pretty common. To be honest, I was a little nervous about people finding out about our engagement, too. '_And I guess Kairi is technically my…fiancée now.'_ I made a face, '_that'll take a while to get used to saying.'_ Lost in my thoughts as I walked down the stairs, I missed a step and lost my balance for a moment before I gripped the railing and got myself together.

'_C'mon, Sora, nothing has changed. The only thing different about your relationship is she's wearing a ring. That's it. Stop worrying about it._' I repeated over and over to myself as I got in the car and pulled out of the parking lot. Reaching down for a moment, I twisted the volume up until the music managed to drown out all of my own thoughts. When I got to school, I wasn't as worried about it anymore; I was much more preoccupied in trying to find the new building for my class. Since I didn't live on campus, I didn't know everything yet like some of my other friends but supposedly everything on campus is within fifteen minutes of walking distance of each other so I thought it wouldn't be a problem.

But I was definitely late; the professor had already begun talking and the stadium seating room was almost completely filled, save a few spots here and there that were in the middle of rows. Groaning inwardly, I walked up a few stairs before politely shoving my way past people's legs and laptops, muttering "Excuse me" here and there. Finally getting to an empty seat, I sighed and slumped backwards before looking up at the screen. '_Generic honor code stuff. Blah, blah, blah; don't cheat, don't plagiarize or you'll get kicked out. I'm just a freshman and I'm tired of this stuff already. I mean, it's kinda common sense. Hopefully I missed most of it and maybe we'll actually start some psychology stuff today.'_

"Bored already?" A girl's voice asked from beside me. I turned, seeing a girl with long, wavy brown hair smiling at me.

"Oh, yeah. Kinda. Just tired of hearing this over and over." I smiled back, "Aren't you?"

She laughed, "Yeah, I know what you mean." She paused, "Oh, sorry. I'm Tori."

"Sora." I replied, "Nice to meet you."

Tori blinked and a look of interest took over her face, "Aren't you on the hockey team?"

I nodded, surprised she recognized me, "Yeah, I am."

"That's cool! So, are you just taking this class for gen ed or is this your major?" She asked enthusiastically.

"Gen ed. I'm a… computer software major." I replied with a frown.

She looked at me sympathetically, "Aw, you don't like it? I'm a music major. I know it'll be tough starting out, but I wouldn't trade it for anything; I love singing."

I raised my eyebrows, "Ah, a performer. No wonder you're so outgoing."

She paused and replied sheepishly, "Oh… sorry if I'm being annoying with all my questions."

I shook my head, "No, it's okay. Um, yeah, I don't really like it but… what I want to do as a career is play hockey but you can't exactly major in that… so I just choose something I figured would be a good, steady job if things don't work out."

"I see." She smiled sympathetically, "Well, if you really end up hating it, there's no harm in switching majors. Don't want to be stuck something you don't like just for money, you know?"

"Yeah. I know you're right… I just don't know what major would actually go with what I want to do." I crossed my arms and stared blankly ahead.

"What about a business major? I remember someone saying something about sports management. Or you could always work in advertising for it to. It may not be _exactly _what you want but it's still related so you're still involved, just from a different aspect." I heard Tori's voice as well as her pencil scratching against the paper as she began to take notes from whatever was on the projected screen.

Snapping out of my daze and quickly starting to right as well, I replied, "Yeah. Thanks, Tori. I'm really gonna consider changing my major. I've never really been good at this computer stuff so I probably should try to get out while I can."

Tori nodded, "Exactly! I mean, you're only a freshman like me, right? Now's the time to do it. Much better than being half way done with your degree and end up changing your mind then. Plus it's only the first day of classes so you can still switch out of any computer classes till the end of the week."

"Definitely." I agreed, flashing a smile, "Really, thank you. I probably wouldn't have even thought about be able to change my major without someone telling me to first."

She laughed, "No problem. I'm happy to help." As the last few minutes of class passed by, we both turned our focus to our notes and stayed silent. When class finally ended, Tori asked as we were packing up our bags, "What class do you have next?"

"Spanish. But that's not till one so I was going to go get some lunch." I replied, throwing my backpack over my shoulder. "What about you?"

"Um," She slipped a piece of paper out of her pocket and unfolded it, looking over it before answering, "Music theory."

"Hm. Sounds interesting. Well, good luck with the rest of your classes. See you on Wednesday." I gave a small wave.

"Thanks, you too!" She waved back before whirling around and heading off in the opposite direction.

As I turned around, I felt my stomach begin to growl and I commented to myself, "Definitely time for lunch." I didn't have time to get breakfast this morning which was odd for me, but thankfully the food places on campus were open pretty much all the time so it'd be easy to grab an early lunch. Settling on a sandwich from the convenience store refrigerator and a soda, I found an empty couch to chill out on and eat until it was time for my next class.

Absent-mindedly chewing on my sandwich, I nearly spit it out as I saw Riku pass by sluggishly. "RIKU!" I shouted out, surprising him and every other person around us. Ignoring everyone's stares, I jumped up and rushed over to him.

Riku scratched the back of his neck sheepishly, "Did you really need to cause a scene, Sora?"

"Well, yeah. You kind of disappeared without notice and I haven't seen you in over a month now." I replied with a roll of my eyes.

"Okay, I get it. I'm sorry." He looked at the ground for a moment, "Uh, let's go talk in one of the lounges or something." Riku started walking down the hall.

"Alright." I nodded and followed after him through a door into a small room. There was a girl in there, but she was off in her own world on her laptop while she blasted music though her headphones so Riku didn't seem to mind her presence. After we had both sat down, I looked back at him and asked, "So… is everything okay, now?"

He nodded, taking a bottle of water from his backpack and taking a sip. "Yeah. I won't go into much detail but they were just leaving threatening voice mails and stuff. I didn't want to get you and Kairi involved, like I said in that letter. So I just went to get my own place, changed my number and that seems to be working so far. The cops know but they can't do much unless my parents actually ever follow through on their threats. But I really doubt they will. I was gonna get in touch with everyone, soon. I swear. I just hadn't gotten around to it yet. But I guess this works too."

"Glad to hear you're okay for the most part." I smiled in relief, "I mean, me and Kairi know you can take care of yourself. But we were still pretty worried, you know?"

"Yeah, I understand." He smiled back. Leaning back in the chair, he asked, "So… what's been up for you two while I've been gone?"

"…A lot." I laughed nervously.

Riku squinted for a moment before suggesting, "Oh, did you two finally start having sex."

"No, actually." I laughed again, "It's not that… um. Well, first off, I got her a cat for her birthday slash our anniversary."

"You would." He laughed too, before shrugging and asking, "What else? I mean, you said a lot. That can't be it."

I shook my head, "No, that's not it." I tapped my fingers against the wooden arm of the chair and looked away, "I kinda, sorta, proposed to Kairi… so we're engaged now."

"_What_?" I heard Riku almost yell in shock before I looked back at him to see very wide eyes, "What? When?"

"Well… I got the idea the morning before I found your note, actually. I went to a park to just sit by myself and think because the night before me and Kairi kind of had an argument about the whole sex thing. She would act like she was fine with everything till the last second then she'd get upset. So it wasn't really an argument, I was just really frustrated. I wasn't directly mad at her, I was mad at _him_. But I guess it came off the wrong way. Anyway, I was thinking what could I possibly do to make her forget about everything that happened. Or maybe not forget it, just be able to _move on_ from it. Then some kids kicked a soccer ball in to my head." I laughed, "And then I got the idea to propose to her after I looked at their parents."

Riku gaped a little and commented, "That has to be the weirdest story about someone deciding to propose to their girlfriend. I mean, I understand the Ryou part. You know I'm still trying to cope with all the damage he's done, too. But the soccer ball and the parents is just odd."

"Yeah, I know. But that's how it happened." I shrugged, "So the next day, I went over to talk to my Mom about it. She was really hesitant at first but the more and more I talked about it, the more she understood that I was completely serious and I wasn't just using this as a way to make it up to Kairi for that argument. So she gave me the ring Dad gave her…"

"Oh, wow." Riku's expression softened, "I'm sure that meant a lot to you. I'm sure Kairi loved it, too."

I nodded, "Definitely. I wouldn't take it at first because, aside from pictures, that's kind of all Mom has left to remember him by. But she insisted, saying it'd make her happier to see Kairi wearing it rather than it just sitting in the closet. And yeah, it meant a lot to Kairi too. I proposed to her on Christmas, actually. In front of my whole family and Axel kind of almost ruined the moment."

Riku shook his head with a grimace, "Why does that not surprise me?"

"He actually didn't do it on purpose, surprisingly." I laughed, "He kind of did it out of shock. He spit out his drink and asked if I was proposing, which it was obvious I was. But in combination of doing that in front of my whole family plus the ring really made Kairi feel like she was officially part of the family and I think she really needed that, too. She was really nervous before Thanksgiving since she had never really been in that situation before so I think she feels a lot better about all of that now."

"That's good. Well, I'm happy for you two." Riku reached over and placed his hand on my shoulder for a few seconds, "You definitely surprised me at first when you dropped the bomb, but I guess in the end it doesn't really surprise me. How did everyone else react, though?"

I smirked, "Of course Jake and Tidus called me crazy. Same goes pretty much for every single guy friend that I've told so far." I stretched out my legs and rested my feet on the edge of the table, "All the girls are ecstatic. It's funny to see the difference between them. Kairi's really worried people are going to judge her today, though. Like meeting new people, probably the first thing they're gonna notice is the ring."

"Guess that's true, I didn't really think about that part." Riku crossed his arms, "But she'll be fine. Anyone who judges her, or you, for your life decisions shouldn't be in your life to begin with."

"Thanks, Riku." I smiled appreciatively before glancing at my cell phone, "Looks like it's time for me to go to class. But what do you say to surprising Kairi? She'll freak out when she sees you."

Riku let out a quick laugh, "Sure. I have class too. I'm supposed to get out at two but might get out a little early since it's the first day. Just call me when you get to your apartment complex and I'll park a little far away so she doesn't recognize the car." He pulled out a pen and ripped off the corner of a piece of paper before scribbling something down and handing it to me, "Here's the new number."

"Sounds like a plan." I stood up and waved as I walked out the door, "See you soon."


	13. Honeymoon Avenue

**I honestly have no excuses for why my updates to this story are so slow other than the fact that now that I'm actually **_**in**_** college, this story is sort of awkward to work on because my views of college were obviously much different in high school lol. The next chapter will be the last (and it's always been planned to be the last so no worries, I'm not shortening due to the fact it's hard to get myself squeeze out chapters). **

**Thank you to anyone who still reads this who's been reading it from the beginning. And if you did give up on it… I don't really blame you lol. I've been super bad about updating and I can do nothing but apologize.**

**Disclaimer: I don't know Kingdom Hearts or the song for which this chapter is named, which is "Honeymoon Avenue" by Ariana Grande.**

XOXO

FRACTURED LOVE: Chapter Twelve

Honeymoon Avenue

_I feel like my heart is stuck in  
bumper to bumper traffic  
I'm under pressure  
cuz I can't have you the way that I want.  
Let's just go back to the way it was,  
when we were on honeymoon avenue._

XOXO

"I've got a surprise for you." I said as I opened the front door, careful to slip in so that Kairi wouldn't see Riku who was lingering just outside.

Sitting on the couch in the living room, she looked up from the book she was reading. She raised an eyebrow suspiciously as she stared at me, "What?" Without replying, I pulled open the door and she jumped up instantly after seeing him, "Riku!"

"Hey," He only just made it inside before Kairi latched onto him.

"It's so good to see you!" She hugged him tightly, "We were really worried about you."

"Yeah, I know. Sorry about that." Riku scratched the back of his head sheepishly, "I was just trying to keep you two out of it but everything's fine now. I'm definitely glad I did what I did, seeing as the huge step you guys took while I was gone. Congratulations, by the way."

Letting go of Riku, she stepped back and smiled with a small blush, "So I guess Sora told you already. Thank you."

He nodded, smirking, "Yeah, he could hardly control himself. He wanted to tell me that more than listen to where I was for the past few months."

"Oh, come on. Did not." I shoved him jokingly. After seeing a flash of disappointment on Kairi's face, I quickly corrected, "I mean, it's still pretty much the first thing I told him. But he told me his situation first, I swear."

"He's telling the truth, I'm just picking on him." Riku laughed and reached out his arm to tussle my hair which I quickly swatted away. "Touchy, touchy." He commented and I rolled my eyes.

Changing the subject, I turned to Kairi, "Hey, Kairi. Did your day go okay? I know you were worried."

She blinked and tilted her head in thought, seemingly replaying the day in her head. She then nodded, "Yeah, it was fine. If anything, it was Naminé and Olette that scared people off because they were so excited to see me."

"Heh. Speaking of…" I paused, for a moment, lowering my voice, "Is everything better between them now? You know, the whole Roxas thing."

"Wait, what?" Riku gave me a confused look.

Giving him a confused look in return, I quickly realized aloud, "Oh. I forgot you weren't here when all of that happened. Uh, well, Roxas came up to me after class one day and basically told me he was starting to think of Olette as more than a friend but at the same time he still really cared about Naminé so he didn't want to hurt her. He eventually did break up with her, and since Olette and Naminé are roommates that whole situation was just kind of awkward. Olette moved out for a little while to give Naminé some space."

"Wow," Riku replied with a surprised face, crossing his arms, "That must have been really tough on all three of them. Seems like they handled it in the best way possible, though." I nodded in agreement before looking back at Kairi.

Feeling both of our stares, Kairi looked towards the ceiling and started, "Um… Well, first off, I didn't see them at the same time. I have class with Naminé and I just saw Olette while I was walking and talked to her real quick since she was on her way to class. But Naminè seems to be more okay with it now and she seems more like her usual self. They're both living with each other again, and Olette said since Naminé okayed it she and Roxas might start dating officially soon. But for right now they're still just friends and trying to make sure everything gets worked out smoothly."

"Well, I'm glad they're putting their friendships with each other first instead of rushing into things. Hope everything works out for the best." I responded, stuffing my hands into my pockets and thinking about how glad I was I had never been in a situation like that.

Riku nodded in agreement before pulling his phone out of his pocket and checking the time. Looking between us, he began apologizing, "I know I didn't get to stay for very long, but I have to get ready to leave for my job at this grocery store near my apartment. Just started there last week."

"It's okay. Was nice seeing you, man." I reached over to pat his back, joking, "Just don't disappear on us again."

He laughed, "Yeah, I won't."

Kairi gave him a stern look, "Seriously, please don't. The room here's always open if you need a place to stay and come over any time you want, okay?" She went over to hug him.

Returning the embrace, he nodded, "I will."

"Good." She replied before letting go and stepping back, "I'm glad you're okay, Riku."

Scratching the back of his neck sheepishly, "Sorry again, for making you two worry. But don't worry, I'm not going anywhere. See you later," With that, he headed out the door.

"Bye!" Kairi and I called out in unison as he shut the door behind him. She turned back to me with a smile, "Thanks for surprising me."

I shrugged as I walked over to the couch and took a seat, "No problem. Knew you'd be really happy to see him."

She came over and sat beside me, reaching out and placing her hand on my leg, "So how did your day go?"

"Pretty boring. You know, syllabus day and all." I replied, then paused, "Oh, I did have an interesting conversation today, though. I'm actually thinking about changing my major to sports management since I'm really not into this computer stuff at all…"

Tilting her head in curiosity, she asked, "Did you stop by your adviser's office or something? I mean, I think it's a good idea and if you think you should switch, then I'm totally behind you on it. I'm just wondering what made you realize you were maybe in the wrong major."

I laughed, "Actually, no, it wasn't my adviser at all. It was this girl I sat next to in my psychology class."

"Oh." Kairi blinked in surprise and looked down.

"Yeah, she recognized me from the team and asked me if I was taking the class for my major or just for gen ed. So when I replied so unenthusiastically she suggested switching to something that still could revolve around hockey like management or advertising. I never really thought about it before but I think that it's a really good idea." I explained enthusiastically, "I guess I should email my adviser soon while I'm thinking about it."

"Hm." Kairi murmured in acknowledgement, before asking in a joking tone, "How'd she react when you said you were engaged? Seems like she was into you."

"I think she was just being friendly," I took a careful pause, realizing my answer probably wouldn't please Kairi too much, "But… it didn't come up." Kairi retreated her hand into her lap and gave me a look of disbelief. I squinted back at her, "Kairi, c'mon. Seriously? Literally all we know about each other is our names and our majors. That's all we talked about, so there was just never a time to say it."

"Okay…" She sighed, clearly still annoyed.

Scooting over closer to her and wrapping an arm around her waist, I asked, "Besides, would it really matter if she was into me? It's not like I'd ever do anything and risk losing you. That's kind of the point of this, you know." I used my other hand to touch hers, rubbing my thumb over her finger wearing the ring, "I wouldn't have asked you if I didn't mean it."

Kairi tilted her head down, "I know… I know I need to let things like jealousy go. But I mean, at the same time, we were just talking about Roxas, Olette, and Naminé a few minutes ago. So I guess I'm just a tiny bit scared even though I have no reason to be."

I bit my lip and leaned back into the couch, "I guess I understand, but there's no point in comparing us to another couple. We're different people so just because something unexpected happened with them doesn't mean something like that will happen to us, okay?"

She nodded and placed her head against my shoulder, "Mhm." I saw her close her eyes, "I'm sorry."

I shook my head, lifting my hands to gently rub her shoulders, "It's okay. Just have to take on problems as they come. Can't try and guess what's gonna happen in life because we'll never really know a hundred percent."

"You're right." She wrapped arms around me and gave me a tight hug before suggesting, "Wanna watch a movie?"

"Sure." I nodded happily, letting go of Kairi so she could get up and pick out a movie for us.

Sitting down on the floor next to the shelf, she ran her fingers along a few DVDs and asked, "What are you in the mood for?"

"Hmm…" I leaned back and crossed my arms, "Anything with comedy, I guess. Even if it's one of your chick flicks, that's fine."

"In that case," I saw her smirk as she pulled a box out and removed the disc.

"So what did you end up picking?" I stared at her curiously, trying to catch a glimpse of the title.

She didn't reply, inserting the disc into the DVD player before heading back to the couch. "It's a surprise." She finally replied as she sat down.

I shook my head, "Guess I set myself up for this, didn't I?"

"Yep." Kairi giggled before nuzzling her head against my shoulder.

XOXO

Grasping my head with both of my hands, I whined, "My brain is gonna explode from all these midterms…"

Kairi reached over to pat my shoulder, not looking up from the notebook she was studying from, "You'll be okay. It's almost over with, you only have one more left."

"Yeah, but it kills me having to study like this." I lowered my hands into my lap and slumped backwards, "I can hardly handle studying just for one test at a time. Having to do it for three at once is torture." I nudged my stack of papers on the table with my foot, wishing I could forget about them.

"Think of it this way," She closed her notebook and placed it on the table, then looked at me, "You've already done it once _and_ you're only a freshman. It can only get easier from here."

"I hope so." I replied unenthusiastically.

"It will." Kairi spoke confidentially as she stood before leaning back down to give me a peck on the lips, "Good luck on your midterm and on the game if I don't see you before it starts tonight."

I smiled nervously, "Thanks, I'll need it." She rolled her eyes, smiling as she turned around and walked towards the kitchen counter. Grabbing her purse, she waved a goodbye before heading out the door.

Everything was going right; Kairi was my fiancée, I changed my major just as Tori had suggested, I was doing well in my classes so far, but I still felt immensely under pressure. I was excited about the future but powering through what I was facing right now was the hardest part. Now that I had switched my major, being stuck in some of my computer classes made me feel somewhat unmotivated so I had to work extra hard to make sure that I didn't let myself slip. My team was depending on me, too. After suffering a few losses, we _really_ needed this win so I really couldn't let my stress interfere with my mindset during the game.

As I made my way out of the apartment, I felt like I was only half-awake. But that was the only way I could really somewhat control my anxiety because inside my chest, my heart's pace was starting to quicken at the thought of the midterm _and _the game. The only positive was that at least once I was done with the midterm, I could come back to my apartment and relax for a bit before the game. _'A nap would probably do a world of wonders.'_ I thought to myself as I opened the door to my car and sat down, '_And it least it's Friday so I have the rest of the weekend to unwind…'_

Once I had gotten to school, my heart sank in my chest as I approached the building my class was held in. '_You'll do fine, you'll do fine.'_ I repeated to myself all the way until I had reached the classroom. No one looked up as I entered, everyone's faces buried in their notes as they tried to review for the last several minutes. I followed suite once I had sat down, my eyes flying over the dozens of pages of notes I had in my notebook; everything looking familiar.

Deciding that if I didn't know something already, I probably wasn't going to learn it in the next five minutes, I decided to put up my notes and just let myself relax for the next five minutes.

"Hey!" I heard Tori's voice from my side.

"H-hey." I snapped my head up in surprise, causing her to laugh.

She sat down and began pulling out her notes, apologizing, "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

I let out a small laugh as well, "It's okay. I'm just nervous."

"Well you made it through your computer classes and Spanish already, right? This should be a breeze compared to those." She pointed out with a tilt of her head.

"I know, I know. Kairi was basically telling me the same thing before she left. It's just cuz the game is tonight too so I'm just driving myself crazy."

When I told Tori that Kairi and I were engaged, she was a tiny bit shocked at first, much like everyone else. Maybe a bit more since she hadn't known us in high school like everyone else, but after a few minutes she returned to her same chipper self.

"All you have to do is make it through this midterm and hockey will come naturally. It's what you're passionate about, so you definitely don't need to worry about that. Just go out on the ice and have fun. I used to be the same way about my singing; I would always be so nervous. And even though I still get a little nervous, I realized that I could never give up the feeling that I get when I perform in front of people, so that fear I had meant absolutely nothing in the scheme of things." Tori's words were obviously very heartfelt, she dropped her note book and began moving her hands as she spoke.

I smiled widely, "Thank you, Tori. I know we haven't known each other for very long but you've seriously helped me a lot."

She waved me off nonchalantly, "It's no problem! Like I said, I've been through kind of the same stuff as you're feeling right now. Just help me out whenever I need someone to talk to and we'll call it even."

"I can definitely do that." I nodded eagerly before our attention was switched to the front of the room, where our professor was now speaking. As he told us to put our notes away, I looked over to Tori, "Good luck."

"You too." She smiled as she cleared the things off of her desk.

'_Here we go._' I thought to myself as I took the test papers and scantrons from the TA, taking one of each for myself and passing them down to Tori. Taking a breath, I looked down at the questions and started to read through them. '_So far so good.'_ I commented to myself, realizing that I definitely knew all the answers on the first page. Filling in the scantron as I went along, I moved fairly quickly through the test minus a few questions here and there. Overall I felt pretty good when I turned in my things at the front of the classroom, thinking that it was definitely at least a B.

Kairi must have been pretty busy with her own midterms because she didn't even have time to come home before I had to leave for the game. On the positive side, that at least meant I got a pretty decent nap with no interruptions so I was feeling refreshed as I walked into the arena toward the locker room. Jake, as always, had beaten me there.

"Hey, man! How'd your midterms go? I feel like I haven't seen you in forever." He greeted eagerly.

I rolled my eyes and laughed, "It's been like maybe a week. And they went pretty well, but I studied _forever_. My brain is fried. How about you, how'd yours go?"

"Alright." He shrugged, "Not bad, not exactly amazing either. I would say I kept my trend of C's and B's."

I nodded as I started to put my gear on, "Gotcha. That's still pretty good, but—"

"Yeah, yeah; I know. I've gotta work harder. Got it." He waved me off with a smirk, "I really am trying. Studying is just really hard for me."

"Same for me, I just have to power through it. I've been getting better about asking my professor and stuff after class or email if there's stuff I don't understand, though. I never really used to do that in high school but it's been helping a lot." I explained as I pulled my jersey over my head.

"That's been a problem for me too, so guess I need to start doing that." Jake scratched the back of his head.

I shrugged, beginning to tie the laces on my skates, "Can't hurt, right? You might as well."

Hearing a loud bang on the lockers, Jake and I looked up to see our captain, James, staring intently at us. "Hurry up, guys. We've got to start warming up!"

"Sorry, just one second." I immediately replied, racing to finish tying my other skate as Jake got up and headed towards the door after James. Putting my helmet on, I rushed out the door and to the ice where the rest of my team was waiting.

"Glad to see you made it, slow poke." Andrew elbowed me in the ribs as I skated past him.

"Yeah, yeah. You won't be calling me slow poke for long." I grinned, skating a quick circle around him.

He waved me off, "But I can start calling you show off."

"Very funny." I rolled my eyes, still smiling. We skated around the arena in circles, occasionally shooting a puck or two at our goalie, Todd. Just as we were about to go back into the locker room I saw Kairi in the stands, who eagerly waved at me.

I waved back only to be tugged by one of my teammates, "C'mon, Sora."

After a few speeches from our couch and our team captain, we returned back to the ice. By that time, the stadium had filled up so it was nearly impossible to find Kairi or anyone else I could recognize. For a game so late in the season, the start was pretty slow. We spent a lot of time at one side or the other but neither team would manage to get the puck into the net.

After a slow first period, frustration started to rise from both sides in the second. Finally, one of my teammates managed to sneak the puck into the net with a wrap-around in the last few minutes followed by another goal from Jake in the beginning of the third. In attempt to block a shot on our goal, I lunged forward at a player on the opposite team and collided with him so hard that we both fell down on to the ice.

Hearing the ref whistle the play dead, I sat up and rubbed my shoulder which had hit the ice pretty hard. "What the hell was that!?" I heard yelling from my side before I felt someone's grasp on the neck of my jersey.

I looked over to see the guy I had collided with, a deep scowl on his face. I threw up my hands in an apology, "It was an accident. I didn't mean to slam into you that hard."

"Yeah, right." He pulled me up by my jersey before shoving me backward and taking off his gloves.

I shook my head and skated backward, "Stop. I'm not fighting you. I'm not going to get taken out of the game and hurt my team over something stupid like this."

"Chill out, man. Like he said, it was an accident." I heard Jake's voice behind me.

"You've already gotten into a fight this season… don't risk it. Besides, we need you. Don't be stupid." One of the guy's teammates muttered to him.

I held out my hands defensively and repeated, "Seriously, I didn't mean to do it. Let's keep the game going."

He glared daggers at me as his teammate dragged him away and we moved into position for a face-off. The game proceeded normally, our opponents eventually scoring one goal against us. With only a few minutes left of the game, I dashed forward with the puck towards the goal only to find myself skating over a stick and flying forward onto the ice. When I looked up with a glare, I saw the same guy again getting pulled away by the ref, commenting sarcastically as he passed me, "It was an accident."

Heaving a sigh and pulling myself up, I asked Jake, "What's his deal?"

He shrugged, "I dunno. I guess he thinks he's already in the NHL so he forgets you get majorly penalized for that kinda shit here in college hockey."

"Not only that but he's not even thinking about his team at all, just himself. Trying to be a tough guy just doesn't pay off in any way." I looked out into the stands, "Not to mention my mom and Kairi are gonna freak now. I went down two times tonight. I can imagine what their reaction would be if I actually fought that guy."

Jake waved it off, "Hey, at least you got up both times. It was pretty scary when you blacked out before."

I sighed, "Yeah, let's not talk about it. Anyway, we're almost done. We just gotta guard Todd long enough to get the win."

"Right." He nodded and skated off to his position. With the penalty against their team, it was easy work to keep the opposing team away from our end as they were too busy guarding their own.

As expected, Kairi had a frown when I exited the locker room. However, my mom seemed fine so there was at least a little bit of relief. "Are you alright? That guy was a huge jerk." She looked over me worriedly.

"Tell me about it. Yeah, I'm fine. My shoulder's a little sore, but that's my own fault." I shrugged it off before realizing who was standing next to Kairi, "Oh, hi, Tori!" I pointed between the two, "Did you guys meet already?"

"Yeah! I recognized her from the picture on your phone you showed me so I went over and introduced myself. Then we ended up talking a lot so I just sat down and stayed there for the rest of the game." Tori explained excitedly, "Anyway, I just wanted to say hi. I've gotta head out; I promised my friend Andre that we'd start working on a song tonight."

Kairi waved, "It was nice meeting you!"

"Same!" Tori replied, "See you Monday, Sora."

"See ya." I waved as well.

"I should be going too before it gets too late. Are you coming home anytime soon? I feel like it's been forever already." My mom teased with a tousle of my hair.

I rolled my eyes with a smile, "C'mon, we were just there for practically a month."

"I know, I know. It's just always nice to have you home. By the way, how were your midterms?" She looked at me curiously.

"They sucked." I groaned, "But I think I did okay. I studied my butt off."

My mom looked to Kairi who quickly replied, "I'm pretty sure I did well too."

"Good, good." She reached out to touch both of us on our shoulders, "Do definitely come home soon, though. Selphie complains all the time about how she hardly sees you two."

Kairi laughed and shook her head, "Jeez, I talk to her every day. Plus, she has a car; she can come see us!"

"I think she's trying to give you alone time since you're newly engaged and all. Either way, the house is always open whenever you want to come over."

"Thanks." I gave her a small hug, "See you later. Love you."

"Love you too." She hugged Kairi as well before leaving.

After I had gotten all my stuff together, we headed out to the parking lot as well. "By the way, Riku was here earlier but he got called in to cover someone's shift. He told me to say sorry he couldn't stay for the whole thing." Kairi explained as we exited the double doors.

I shrugged, "It's okay. It's still cool he managed to come for a little bit." Cracking my neck, I commented, "It sucks we always have to bring our own cars since I have to be here so much earlier than you. I really do not feel like driving. I just wanna go home and crash on the bed."

"I would say we could just leave your car here over night but I dunno… The school's parking operation people are known to be a little tow happy." She laughed.

"Yeah, I'd rather not risk it. We definitely don't need to be spending several hundred dollars to get it back. Plus I've heard horror stories about cars getting towed and then being covered in scratches and stuff when they get them back. That can't happen to my baby." I finished in an overdramatic tone.

Kairi rolled her eyes and shook her head, "Jeez." She pulled out her keys and unlocked her car, "I'll see you when you get home."

"Okay." I nodded, walking over a few more feet to my own car. As I sat down in my seat, it was all too tempting to just lean it back and fall asleep right then and there. '_Thank goodness it's less than a 10 minute drive home.'_ I shook my head to wake myself up before turning the car on and turning up the volume as loud as I could stand it, making sure to turn it back down before I entered our apartment complex.

Kairi was on the floor playing with Midnight as I walked through the door, looking up for a moment when I entered the door but quickly looking back to the cat. I normally would have commented '_Oh, I see how it is.'_ but tonight I was just way too exhausted. Dropping my duffle bag in a corner of the bedroom, I took of my jeans and swapped my shirt for a fresh one before collapsing onto the bed and closing my eyes.

"You really are that tired, huh?" I heard her voice as she entered the bedroom, turning on a lamp beside the bed and turning off the main light. Making no verbal response, I just shook my head up and down with my eyes still closed. "Are you sure?" Her voice took on a suggestive tone and I heard the rustling of clothes.

Peeking an eye open in curiosity, I saw her climb onto the bed beside me in only her bra and underwear. I felt a small spark of energy return to my body until Kairi scooted over and laid her head down on my shoulder resulting in a sharp pain. Letting out a sharp breath of air, she jumped up quickly as I whined, "Ouch…"

"I'm so sorry." She gently touched my arm, "Are you sure it's okay?"

"Yeah, I'm sure it's just a bruise so you putting pressure on it just hurt a little bit. I'll survive." I patted my shoulder to show her it was alright.

She looked me over again, "You don't want ice or anything?"

I shook my head, "No. I was just about to change my mind about being tired, though… You would happen to choose a night where I'm just completely out of commission." I stuck my tongue out, joking.

"Sorry." She smiled sheepishly before grabbing one of my t-shirts out of the dresser and putting it on before slipping off her bra from underneath it, "Anyway, we _could_ just wait till we're married since we're already engaged and all."

"If you want to…" I replied quietly, closing my eyes.

I heard her climb back on to the bed, this time getting under the covers. Snuggling up to my side but being wary of my shoulder, she replied softly, "I'm just kidding."

"Were you really ready tonight?" I opened my eyes and turned my head towards her, "I'm not ruining the moment or anything, am I?"

She closed her eyes in thought, "Maybe I could have been, but I'm not entirely sure. I just wanted to see where it would go. But it's okay." She loosely grasped my hand with her own, "There'll be plenty of other times."

"You sure?" I felt myself beginning to drift in and out of sleep, the warmth of Kairi's body on top of the fact the bed was extremely comfortable.

Kairi was seemingly falling asleep too, giving a delayed response of "Of course." as she entangled her legs with mine, "Just go to sleep. I know you're really tired."

"Goodnight, Kairi." I whispered to her before yawning.

Her eyes closed, she smiled, "Goodnight."


End file.
